Harry Potter: A New Beginning
by Jocelyn H
Summary: Harry Potter goes to live with his godfather Sirius Black. Please be kind, my first fanfic!
1. Default Chapter Title

Chapter 1 - Coming Home

Harry was finally going to live with Sirius. It had been difficult and time taking, but with the help of Dumbledore, and the rest of the Hogwarts staff (obviously excluding Snape) they gotten his name cleared before Harry's 5th year at Hogwarts! Harry packed his belongings into a small suitcase which the Dursleys had reluctantly agreed for him to use. He knew the only reason that had been acting so twitchy and Uncle Vernon had ceased his usual yelling was because they had heard that Sirius Black, Harry's "criminal" godfather was coming to pick Harry up. 

Harry had heard Vernon and Petunia talking, "Obviously, the crook bloodline runs in the family." And he gave a snort. 

But Harry was too happy and joyous to even worry about Uncle Vernon's constant insults behind his back. He packed up his all his robes, his books, the broom polishing kit which Hermione had given him for his birthday, his homework and the rest of his stuff. His broom was lain gently across his right shoulder, and his wand in his pocket. As he walked down the stairs, the loud talking was hurriedly silenced. Dudley's so called diet had not had an effect on him one bit. Though he was eating less, he moved around much less and complained of lack of nutrition. Whenever Harry saw Dudley's five chins wobbling uncontrollably under his face, he had to do everything to suppress his laughter. Harry had to control that laughter now as he saw Dudley walked valiantly down the stairs like some kind of wounded and proud veteran. 

Uncle Vernon looked at his son and a smile spread across his shrewd cold face. "My son! Dudley! Come here boy." He patted at a seat next to him on the couch. 

Harry ignored the clumsy boy as Dudley whooshed past him and didn't give single glance when Harry's broom went crashing to the ground. Harry gasped. He rushed down to his broom and searched it all over for scratches, splinters etc, kind of like how Uncle Vernon inspected the seat of his car every time Harry had sat on it. He rubbed a smudge off the handle of his Firebolt 3000 with his index finger and picked it up gently. He threw it over his shoulder again and came into the living room. He took a seat on a chair, as far away from the Dursleys as possible. 

It was 7:00. _Sirius Black should be here any minute._ Harry thought. He sat patiently on his chair. This had happened once before, Ron's family had come to pick him up for the Quidditch World Cup, and they had tried to travel by Floo Powder. Harry hoped Sirius hadn't intended to do the same. It was 7:10. 7:15, 7:30. Uncle Vernon twiddled his thumbs nervously. "_Where _do you suppose your godfather is, Harry?" He spat. 

Harry cleared his throat. "He should be on his way here now…." His voice trailed off as he heard a large thud. 

Harry gulped. _Uh oh._ Harry realized now. Of course! Sirius Black was riding Buckbeak. Harry smiled innocently at the Dursleys and stood up. "Well, I suppose that's my ride." He tried not to sound amused. "Your _ride_ Harry?" Vernon stood up and glared viciously at Harry. Aunt Petunia looked indifferent and Dudley's face was smug with spite. "Um, yeah." Harry squeaked. "I think that thump, was my ride." 

At that very moment, the large Hippogriff came sailing straight through the door. Harry could almost _feel_ Aunt Petunia wince at every crack of the splinters as they came bounding through. Harry ran up to the pile of wood and nails. He dug ferociously in search of his godfather. He found Sirius stuck at the bottom of the pile, laughing and stern at the same time. Buckbeak was quiet alright, he had gotten out of the mess soon enough and was standing obediently at the corner, grooming his feathers for wooden chips. 

"Damn it!" Uncle Vernon shouted. That door had been fixed just a month ago, Harry's Firebolt 3000 had gotten out of control when Dudley had tried to use it to sweep the floor.

Sirius stood up. All of the Muggle family backed away quickly as if upon reflex. His hair had been combed, well, as well as it could be. He robes were less soiled, but still remained slightly dirty and ragged. Dudley, by instinct, grabbed his enormous back end and squealed shrilly. No doubt he still remembered the first year Hagrid had tried to put a spell on him. Dudley had on hand over his behind and another one on his tongue. The Tongue-Ton Toffees had a huge effect on him also. 

To the Dursley's surprise, he held out his hand in a most cordial manner. None of them even walked up to shake it. Sirius backed away, confused. Harry replied, "They're not exactly wizard fans, they're muggles." Sirius took Harry's hand and led him away. "Do you have all of your stuff?" Harry nodded quietly. They placed the large suitcase on Buckbeak and then mounted the large hippogriff's back. To the Dursley's utter grief, the large animal went crashing out a window. When Harry heard the glass shatter behind him, he broke out into a loud laughter. Sirius joined in heartily. Together they soared into the starry night…

Author's Note: OK, it's a short chapter. But it's my first fanfic, I'll try to make it up later.


	2. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters etc belong to J.K. Rowling. (Sorry about not mentioning this on the last chapter)

Chapter 2 – Sirius Black's Secret

Buckbeak halted abruptly in front of a large cluster of tall juniper trees. Harry woke with a start. "Huh? Are we there yet?" He flung body around in confusion and found himself lying at Buckbeak's feet. He groaned as his suitcase fell on top of his face, pretty much smashing his worn out glasses. He sat up, and the suitcase went toppling over the side of his head. 

"Where are we Sirius?" Harry pushed his glasses higher up his nose, and looked around.

Sirius hopped off Buckbeak and led the hippogriff to a small clearing and tied him with a long rope to tree. "Come, I'll show you."

He took Harry by the hand and led him through the winding paths across the pitch-black forest. Harry had to do all he could to keep his suitcase from slipping through his fingers. All of a sudden, Harry noticed an extremely revolting smell. It was something that he couldn't detect, but he knew he had known it from somewhere before. All of a sudden, he knew what it was.

Sirius had led him into a forest of ghosts. Harry remembered all too well when Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor ghosts had personally invited him and his friends to his party. The place reeked of dead corpses and soon Harry, Ron and Hermione had to leave before they would barf. Harry felt that way now. He tried to hold his nose, but one hand was being consistently pulled by Sirius and the other was gripping his suitcase, his broomstick woven through the handle. 

Sirius all of a sudden jolted to a stop. Harry smashed into his back, with a loud "oomph!" He collected himself in a matter of seconds and blurted out loudly, "What are you trying to do? Break my glasses?!" He pushed his glasses again up his nose, grumbling to himself about "where does he live anyway? A graveyard?" 

Sirius silenced him bluntly with a jab from the elbow. Harry now realized that something was going on. They had landed behind a bunch of bushes. It was a small sort of area, with very little room to move around. Harry could hear a soft murmuring of voices past the clump of bushes. He leaned over to listen, as Sirius was doing. When he decided he could hear nothing, he went and peered through the bushes into the clearing where the two voices were coming from. 

There was a large fire blazing in the center. There were two people in black robes sitting across from each other, whispering to each other secretively. The hooded figures didn't notice Harry as he spread the bushes apart barely, straining to see what was going on. 

He could hear them better now, he picked up a couple of sentences every now and then…

"Our Lord, what would our Lord say?"

"Don't worry, it'll be this year. She's not finished completely yet. We'll get her, and then….him."

That was all Harry could catch that he could make sense of. He strove to hear the rest, but the crackle of the flames drowned out the remaining of the conversation. Harry didn't know what that meant. _Our Lord… _Could they mean Lord Voldemort? Was it possible? And who did they want to "get?" He gulped. He turned around and around frantically in search for Sirius, but he was not to be found anywhere. Another gulp. 

He was about to panic when he saw a giant black dog sitting behind him. 

"Sirius!" He whispered. "Sirius, who are they?" 

The dog sat down, then almost immediately took the form of a man once again. He grabbed Harry firmly on the shoulder. 

"Harry, we have got to go,_ right_ now!" He said in a hoarse whisper.

Harry shrugged. "No problem there." 

Together they rushed through the bushes and trees, Harry holding his belongings as tightly as possible, and Sirius, holding Harry as tightly as possible. It seemed like they ran for hours. Harry counted the roots he tripped on, and decided that it was pointless once he reached two hundred. 

They trod on, until they reached a small hut. Sirius practically _shoved_ Harry through the door. "Now, Harry, I don't want you to repeat a word of what you heard. Understand?" Harry nodded obediently. "Yes Sirius."

"Good, now Harry. I'll explain it to you okay? Here, why don't you have a cup of tea?" He handed Harry a large mug and filled it to the brim with boiling hot tea. Harry nearly the dropped the mug when his lips touched the steaming hot drink. He sputtered loudly. Sirius chuckled. "Sorry, but it usually gets chilly here at night, so I like to keep things warm_. Warm is right._ Harry thought. He looked at the cots, they were covered with at least five different quilts, each of a strange color. The fire was blazing madly, flickering and throwing shadows each and every directions of the cottage. 

"So," Harry coughed. "What _was_ that about anyway?" He was curious, and he found this a much better way to find out then to be listening behind a bunch of bushes.

"Well," Sirius began. "When my name was cleared, Dumbledore was always ready to help me. But of course, the other professors, like Snape for instance-" Harry spit out the tea. "Snape?! Snape helped?!" His eyes bulged like two large Cockroach Clusters. 

Sirius slowly let Harry regain mental stability before he began. "Yes Harry. Snape helped me clear my name." Harry interrupted again. "What for?" Sirius set down his cup loudly. "Harry, listen to me! Snape isn't as bad as you think. Dumbledore knows what he's doing, he would never hire a professor if he didn't think it was all right." He sighed. "OK, now where were we? Oh right! OK, so some of the professors didn't readily believe my story. So…Dumbledore and I came to an agreement. I would spy on the Death Eaters, and if I brought him some useful information, he could use it to convince the others. It was very risky. It _is _risky playing with the Dark Lord, Harry." Sirius sighed and looked down at ground. 

"The only way to hide, is to become an Animagi. But even then, it's hard to fool such a dark and powerful wizard." He coughed. "So now, when finally all the people gave in, they helped and came up with a story which the Ministry of Magic would believe. Cornelius Fudge….not an easy guy to trick. We just told the truth with a little bit of exaggeration here and there, or maybe some twists and turns. In the end, Cornelius Fudge believed us (mostly because of Dumbledore) so here I am now." 

Harry sat there thoughtfully, "Well, so now what? Are you still spying for Dumbledore?" Sirius Black nodded silently. "Yes, yes Harry. That's why I waited for a while to hear what the two were saying. I thought it might be important."

Harry interrupted again. "So you mean those two were Death Eaters? So when they said "Lord" they meant Voldemort?" He jumped out of his chair. "And what do you mean it's not important?" He was panicked, but not angry or upset. 

"Harry," Sirius began. "Harry, that's not what I meant. It _is_ important, I'm not going to lie to you, but I just thought that overhearing a conversation of Death Eaters (yes, Harry, they _were_) was not the best way to find out about it. I was hoping I could tell you-" 

"You mean you know about it? Can you tell me? What's it about?" He nearly tripped over his own shoes in alarm. Sirius sighed. "Harry, let me tell you, and don't interrupt or I won't be able to tell you until it actually happens." Harry sighs also. "Right, sorry." 

Sirius continued his story. "Well, what's happening ( I found out spying on some other Death Eaters) is that, well, we think that Lord Voldemort is trying to trick you, leading you into some kind of trap. I don't know much about it yet, but hopefully, it won't happen." He looked as if he was finished talking, so Harry immediately spoke up. "But the Death Eaters mentioned a "_her_?" He said loudly. 

"That's what I'm worried about. I know this doesn't make sense, but from the past conversations I've picked up, I think they're talking about your mother."

Author's Note: OK, this chapter is a lot longer than my last one. I hope you liked it!


	3. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters etc, belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 3 – The Vision

"What? My _mother_?!" Harry said this in an almost sarcastic manner. "C'mon Sirius, you've lied to the Dark Lord, Cornelius Fudge and a lot of other people, is this the best you can do?"

Sirius shook his head, his dirty hair dangling and swinging along. "Harry…I'm not kidding with you, okay? There is a chance that your mother _could_ be still alive. Why won't you believe me? Why would I lie to you?"

Harry turned away from Sirius's, he felt as if his godfather's eyes could pierce his body and soul. But he was now enraged, first, because he felt as if his godfather was lying to him, second, that Sirius, his _godfathe_r, would even dare make a lie about his mother, as much as he knew he wished his mother _was_ alive.

"Sirius, if my mother is alive, then why am I _here_?" He was close to tears now. Harry was somewhat pleading with Sirius to say that he was kidding, just playing, that his mother died loving her child, that she would do anything in her power to be with him. Not, that Lily Potter had forsaken her son to be raised up by his aunt and uncle, for his life to be littered here and there with the Dursley's ridicule. 

Sirius seemed lost for words, he started to say something, but stopped himself. Instead, he just replied, "I don't know Harry." 

Harry stood up, his was furious. "You don't know? How come you know everything else about me, but you don't know why I was to be left an orphan?!" 

"I'm so sorry," Sirius stood up also, his eyes pointed at the floor. "Harry, I'm sorry if that's the way you feel about it. I thought you could take it calmly."

"Calmly?" Harry bellowed? "Calmly? How could I possibly take it calmly when I found out that my long lost mother all of a sudden came back to life? When there is suddenly a possibility that she had abandoned me, that she doesn't want me?! Oh! But of course I should be calm! I'm just her son anyhow!" 

For the first time that night, Sirius Black seemed angry. "This is not your mother's fault!"

Immediately Harry regretted everything he had said, he knew Sirius was right. It was not her mother's fault. But even with this, he could not get rid of the cloud of anger that hovered above his head. 

* * * * *

That night, as Harry lay alone on his small cot, gazing up at the ceiling, he decided he would not think about the incident which had taken place only a few hours ago. He tried to think about Ron, Hermione, his broom, Quidditch, _anything _that would take his mind off of his mother. 

Sirius was not there. He had left w/out Harry noticing. _Must have had some spying to do._ Harry thought spitefully.

He fake slept for maybe a couple of hours and then he heard a small noise outside the door. He opened it slightly, just enough to see who or what it was. To his utmost surprise and joy, he saw Hedwig, shaking her feather indignantly, obviously upset about being locked out of her own home. He laughed quietly and let her in. She flew around, to get used to her surroundings before sitting on top of her cage and hiding under her fluffy white wing for the night. Just realizing that she had a letter tied on to her foot, she held out her leg with embarrassment in having forgotten the reason she was there. 

Harry untied the letter from her leg and opened it. It was from Ron. 

Hey Harry-

What's new? Are you really moving in with Sirius? Tell me all about it okay? Since Hedwig was already here with your last letter, I decided to use her, Pigwidgeon isn't exactly the most trustworthy owl there is. Anyway, we (and I mean the whole family) were wondering if Sirius would let you go to Diagon Alley to do the shopping with us! I'm really excited, I heard we get to learn a lot of new things in our 5th year! Well, I wanna hear from you soon!

Ron

Harry frowned. Well, his first day with Sirius hadn't been too great. _Should I tell Ron?_ Harry pondered silently to himself. He decided not to, as usual, he hid his problems so he wouldn't ruin his friends' summer. He would delay writing the letter until tomorrow. 

Harry put on his Invisibility Cloak and left into the night.

It was a chilly night, the wind stung Harry like a knife. He hurried along, hoping for some reason to turn back besides his own fear and fatigue. He walked along quietly through the forest, hoping that he wouldn't run into Sirius. 

All of a sudden he blacked out. The last thing he saw was a tall hooded figure. A dementor. He would've have reached for his wand and cast a Patronus Spell, but he was too late. He was sprawled on the ground, like if in a seizure. 

As always, Harry heard his parents, but this time, he heard something else…

__

Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!

And then there was a cold, mirthless laughter that sent chills down Harry's back.

No! Please don't take Harry, not Harry!

Stand aside, girl!

And then a flash of light, and all went black…but then, yet another scene took place, this was more like a vision…not a dream, more of a prediction…than a memory…

He and his mother were sitting on Buckbeak, her face was pale, thin, resembling Sirius's but to Harry, she looked more beautiful than ever. She was also weak, and frail, yet the grip she had on Harry shoulder was strong. She looked into his eyes, and for the first time tonight, Harry thoughts wandered, he felt happy, his worries had disappeared as abruptly as they had come. 

Harry started talking to her, about the 14 years of his life that she had missed. Then, all of a sudden, she started to fade, slowly. At first, she became slightly transparent. For a moment, Harry didn't notice, but then he started to notice, and he became frightened. Was his mother going to leave him again? 

After couple of minutes, she started to become like a television screen with bad reception, blurry and shifting. He thrust his hands upon her, as if to stop her from leaving, but they went right through her. Harry started to panic. 

"Mother! What's happening?! Where are you going?"

And then, without warning, a flash of light struck Harry's eyes, and he could see no more. It was the flash that had appeared so many years ago.

He was falling from the back of Buckbeak. Falling, falling, falling…he landed on his bed with a loud *thump!* He sat up in his bed, the birds were chirping, the sun was overhead, he could see the rays of sunlight streaming through the cracks and windows of the small house.

* * * * * 

Sirius was sitting next to his cot with a cup of tea in his hand. "Harry? Are you awake?"

"Yeah…but what happened?" He turned in his bed blindly, as if wanting to hide in the mass of blankets forever. 

"Harry, don't go wandering outside again? Do you understand?" The expression on Sirius's face was stern, but all Harry could see was a pile of quilts. He set the tea down.

"Yes sir." Harry mumbled. "But what happened? All I remember is a dementor, and then…" He poked his head from the stack of covers and reached for his glasses which were laying on a small table next to the bed. 

"Yes, there was a dementor Harry, but I got there just in time. I set a weak Patronus spell upon him, and he seemed to retreat. But then, he turned immediately into _my _worst fear. So, in other words, he was a boggart. Thanks to the help of my teachers many years ago in Hogwarts, I performed the spell to get rid of it. You know it perhaps?" He turned to Harry.

"You mean to get rid of a Boggart? Oh, yeah. Professor Lupin taught us." He had his glasses on now, so he could see clearly. 

"Anyway, I brought you back here, and you're fine, so that's that." He threw his hands in the air. 

Harry pondered whether to tell Sirius of his strange illusion when he had encountered the Boggart/dementor, but he decided not to, maybe later _he_ didn't even know what it meant. 

Sirius had a worried look in his eyes. "Harry, I have informed the Ministry of Magic, and they told me, that it may not be best for you to continue living with me. I mean, the forest is full of dangers, and the kind of life I lead, spying on Voldemort… they think it's no way for you to live. So if anything like this happens again, I'm afraid they're going to have to take you back with the Dursleys." He shook his head. 

Harry gasped. He knew his time with Sirius so far hadn't been the greatest but it was a hell lot better than living with his cruel aunt and uncle. 

"No! I promise! I won't do anything like that again! Just let me stay here, I don't want to be with the Dursleys! I swear, just don't send me back!" He was yelling frantically, having forgiven his godfather for event yesterday. 

Sirius broke into a smile. "Ok, I'm glad to hear that. Now, ready for breakfast?" 

Harry nodded happily, maybe his stay would be better than he thought…as long as they kept off the subject of his mother, he quickly noted.

Author's Note: This is kind of a boring chapter, I know, sorry! Maybe the next one will be better…


	4. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 4 – The Story of Lily Potter

Harry had finished his breakfast, which consisted of mostly toast and some Muggle cereal. Sirius sat across from him, reading a letter that some Ministry owl had sent him. He shook his head. 

"What is it Sirius?" 

Sirius didn't answer right away, instead, he read a little bit more before returning Harry's question. He shook his head some more, which made Harry even more curious. "Well, what is it?" 

Sirius set the paper down for a moment and cocked his head thoughtfully. "Well Harry, the Cornelius Fudge is getting upset again. Like I told you earlier this morning, he thought that it wasn't safe for you to be living with me, when I was spying and doing dirty work."

"So? What does that have to do with it?" Harry asked bluntly. It definitely didn't seem like a big deal that he was living with his godfather. "You're my legal guardian right? They can't take me away from you."

"That's not true Harry. One mistake and they could prove it wrong. The Ministry could take you into custody, or send you back to the Dursley's, either one." Sirius sighed. "They sent me a letter. Here, take a look at it."

Harry picked up the floppy parchment and read it out loud. 

Dear Mr. Black,

We understand that you have taken Harry Potter under your care. We 

also understand that you are supposedly his legal guardian. Though we respect 

that, you must realize, that if any danger comes to Harry, we will have to 

take action. He will be sent back to his aunt and uncle, or else, the Ministry will 

take custody of the boy.

From,

_Cornelius Fudge_

Harry frowned. "Why is everybody getting into my business? Why do they have to do that?"

"They probably realized that some of my story was fishy." Sirius shrugged as if it was no big deal. "Don't worry, just be careful and everything will be fine."

Harry nodded. "Ok, if you say so." 

* * * * *

Sirius had gone out. Harry was alone with Hedwig, a couple of books, and a lot of homework. He set to work immediately after Sirius had left with "important business." Harry knew what it was though.

He brought out his books and started to work on his essay about Potions. He tried to make it as flawless as possible. Snape could detect a slight mess-up and take 5 points from Gryffindor, or even more. He would probably bring Harry's grade down to a B-, which would make Hermione give him a lecture about staying awake in classes.

He hadn't written about a paragraph when Sirius came back. 

"Hi Harry. Working on your homework?"

Harry nodded. "Yup, Potions. Snape is pretty picky on the Gryffindors, so I have to be careful."

Sirius nodded in understanding. Harry all of a sudden remembered his dream and chose to tell him now. 

"Sirius, you know that dementor, er, I mean that boggart? I had a strange illusion." He looked down at his parchment and quill.

"Strange? How so?" Sirius didn't lift his head from the Daily Prophet, which he was reading intently. 

"Umm, you know how I usually hear my parents? Well, I heard…er, well, _saw _something else last night." Sirius looked up now, Harry knew he had his full, undivided attention. 

"What Harry? What did you see?" Sirius was perturbed. His face had gone more white than ever. "What?"

"Well," Harry was all of a sudden not sure if he should tell Sirius, even just mentioning provoked him. 

"At first, it was just the usual, I heard my parents, Lord Voldemort and a flash. Then, the scene changed, I saw my mother. We were sitting on Buckbeak, and we were high above the ground. I was talking about my life, and then, gradually, she started to disappear.

"She started to wane, she became see-through, like a ghost, I could throw my arms through her. And there was the flash of light again, and I was falling off Buckbeak." Harry rubbed his hands nervously.

Sirius sat there motionlessly for a moment, and then he slowly stood up, as if afraid he was going to fall. His hands gripped the table viciously, his knuckles turned white, and when he stood up, the table tilted dangerously. 

"Harry, don't you see?" Sirius looked at Harry with his large, powerful eyes. "Don't you get it Harry?" Then all of a sudden, he threw a sharp question at the boy.

"How was she? What was her state of being?" Sirius inquired. 

"Well," Harry began. "She was pale, thin, and very weak." He fumbled with his quill, flipping ink all over his shirt.

Sirius seemed to tumble over. He almost collapsed. "Harry, do you see?" Harry shook his head dubiously. 

"Harry," Sirius gasped for breath. "If that dream meant anything, it could mean that your mother is still alive!"

Harry raised an eyebrow at Sirius. "Explain please."

"Your dream meant that your mother is still alive, and she wants to come see you! It's like a prediction! And, when you have seen your mother… she will be killed by Lord Voldemort! That's what the flash was for!" He was out of breath.

Harry understood. The flash that he had saw was the same one used on his father, and now it would be used on his mother to get rid of her once and for all. 

"How could my mother be alive?" Harry asked. 

"I don't know," Sirius replied. "Maybe it was the bond between the two of you. I have no idea."

"But, we aren't going to let that happen right?" He looked at the expression on Sirius's face. It was frightened, but at the same time, perfectly calm. 

"Harry, if your vision was actually true, then there is probably not much we can do about it. We'll try, but fate will just handle the rest." 

Harry nodded, he understood. Then, another thought sprang to his mind. "You knew my mother pretty well didn't you? I mean being my father's best friend and all, you must have known her right?"

Sirius hesitated before answering, "Yes, Harry, I knew her very well. She was a wonderful lady." His eyes seemed to stare, glazed at something. Harry knew that though his eyes were open, he was seeing nothing.

"What was she like, Sirius?" Harry leaned forward.

"She was an amazing person. She loved you very much. I'm sure she would be very proud of you if she saw you today." His eyes were fixed on the wall.

Harry tilted his head. "Tell me more about her Sirius, tell me everything you know."

Sirius nodded. "All right Harry:

"Your mother was born to a very good family, her parents were always caring and nice. They were always there for their daughters. But her sister… well, I don't think she took to Lily very much, I think she felt very jealous and threatened. Your mother told me that when she started Hogwarts, Petunia felt very jealous and was always making rude remarks to her. 

"Her first year at Hogwarts was where she met your father James. She was sorted to be in a different house than him, but that didn't stop him from loving her. They were always hanging around together. Remus, Peter and I would always watch them, and play pranks on them. 

"They like the pranks, I think, they thought they would spruce up the evenings. Sometimes the five of us would sneak into Hogsmeade with that Marauder's Map. It was very fun, she was a very adventurous person. 

"I have to admit, sometimes I was jealous that the two were getting so intimate, but usually I could always face James with a smile and Lily too. They were two of my best friends. Remus and I would spend many afternoons cooking up some way to surprise the two with a romantic evening at Hogsmeade, but usually the Severus Snape always caught us in mid-act and we had to retreat.

"Your father was a great Quidditch player, and Lily would sometimes go at night to watch him at Quidditch practice with Remus and I. Peter usually was in some kind of trouble for breaking something and at detention, so he usually stayed. They were a great pair."

"On the last year of Hogwarts, James and Lily decided to get married. They tried to keep it to just the five of us, but somehow it got slipped out ( I think it was that clumsy boy Peter). But to our surprise, the two families didn't seem to mind at all. It was just Petunia who held a persistent grudge. She even thought about skipping the wedding, but her mother and father forced her to go.

"When the two were married, everyone was present, your mother and father were rather popular at Hogwarts (except by the Malfoy family, and Snape). It was a wonderful wedding and I had so much fun. Lupin wasn't there though. It was full moon that night, but later he sent his deepest regrets.

"Well, when you were only 1 years old, Lord Voldemort came into power. They wanted for me to be their secret keeper, but I told them that it was too obvious, that Voldemort would obviously come searching for me, and so instead they used Peter Pettigrew, and you know the story from there." Sirius sighed. "Peter Pettigrew, what was I thinking?!" He shook his head, and said to himself, "Sirius, why didn't you convince them to use Albus? Why?" 

"Your mother was a beautiful, and very clever lady, your father and mother deserved better…" 

Harry looked sympathetic. "Sirius, it's ok, it's not your fault, you didn't know." 

There was a long pause. The silence was deafening. "No, Harry." Sirius choked. "I _did_ know."

Author's Note: Just a little hint, so you don't get all worked up, Sirius isn't bad, there's a logical explanation to all of this. And, by the way, I just want you to know, I don't really care if some of this stuff goes off course the real Harry Potter books, cuz, hey, it's my story! Hehe.


	5. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling, you know, blah blah blah. 

Chapter 5 – The Truth

"You knew?" Harry's voice was down to a whisper. "You knew that Peter Pettigrew was on Voldemort's side, yet you told me parents to use Pettigrew? But…why? Why Sirius?"

"It's a complicated matter, Harry. Very complicated, _I_ could barely even sort it out." Sirius coughed. "Your father convinced me to do it Harry, let me explain…

"As you know, Lord Voldemort was a _very_ powerful Dark wizard. And when he was after your family, your father knew that his family had a very little chance to escape. Even the hiding place/secret keeper spell was likely to fail. 

"But, the thing is, when he asked me to be his secret keeper, I had to refuse, it was too obvious. Your father then took Peter Pettigrew into consideration. I don't blame him, Peter Pettigrew, that clumsy oaf, nobody thought that even the Dark Lord would take him under even his command. 

"Peter Pettigrew, I knew, was on the Dark side. I had been spying on him, and I had realized what had happened. Of course, at first I was too scared to tell, but then, when I had found out that James was using him as their secret keeper, I had to tell your father. 

"But by then, your father had already deemed Peter to be a worthy secret keeper and had used him instead.

"So I told him that there was still a chance to change, that _I_, _Sirius Black_, could be his secret keeper, instead of that nasty little Peter Pettigrew. But he refused. 

"He said that it was too late, that Peter already knew, and had probably already informed the Dark Lord, and if I became their secret keeper, Voldemort would have a very open chance to kill me too. 

"James, being the kind and caring person he was, refused, and I mean _refused_ to let me be his secret keeper for my sake. He made me promise that if anything happened to him or Lily that I would take you in as my duty is as a godfather. 

"And, of course, I put up a big fight against this. I tried to tell your father, that if they switched secret keepers now, that there could still be a chance. But he wouldn't let me. 

"He knew that what I said was partly a lie; there was pretty much no hope for them now, but I just _had_ to try!" 

Sirius frowned, his head hung low, he looked as if on the verge of tears. He blurted out loudly, to no one in particular, "Peter Pettigrew! That asshole!" He gritted his teeth tightly and hid his face in his hands.

Immediately Harry was sorry for bringing this up. He understood. Sirius had been misapprehended. His godfather hadn't purposely set up stratagem to capture the Potters', he had tried to save them from their doom. 

Harry found himself trying to comfort Sirius again. 

"Sirius, I'm sure my father knew what he was doing. It's ok. On my father's behalf, I forgive you." Harry said sympathetically.

Sirius seemed to take this very seriously, and he felt that this remark took a great deal of burden off his back. He nodded, and Harry noticed, that there _were _tears in his eyes. He wasn't crying, but his eyes were slightly moist and red from rubbing.

"Thank you Harry. You really don't know how much that means to me. I went through my twelve years in Azkaban, feeling so guilty about James's and Lily's death, and I thought that if I didn't get Peter, or, 'Scabbers' as he was known at the time, he would get you too." 

Sirius seemed a lot better now, his eyes weren't as red, and he didn't have the occasional break in his voice. 

Harry smiled. "I'm sure that my father would have forgiven you if he was here, so don't worry about it." 

Sirius and Harry looked at each other and grinned. Harry decided to change the subject quickly, before Sirius started to get moody again. 

"By the way Sirius, I got a letter from Ron. He asked if I can go to Diagon Alley with him to go to get my supplies for Hogwarts, can I go?"

Sirius nodded jovially. "Of course Harry. When is it?" 

Harry shrugged. "Well, they usually go the week before school starts, so probably next week or so. If you want, I'm sure that you can come also." 

Sirius smiled, but shook his head. "Sorry Harry, have some work to do." He winked.

"Right! I forgot." They both laughed with a light heart. 

Maybe there was something good to put in his letter to Ron about his stay with Sirius after all…

* * * * *

Harry yawned. It was late. He had finished all of his assignments, and Sirius had left an hour ago. Hedwig made affectionate little owl-noises through her cage. He had lit a fire in the fireplace about ten minutes ago. He put his stuff away and got ready to go to bed. 

"Good night Hedwig." He gave a tremendous yawn, which made even Hedwig a little bit uneasy. She fluttered her wings fondly and hid under them for the night. 

Harry laid on his cot and pulled his blanket over his head. He had written his letter to Ron, and he had left out all the bad parts, but mostly filled it with excited new about going to Diagon Alley. 

He popped an occasional question here and there; "How's your family doing," or, "How's Percy doing about the event with Mr. Crouch?" 

It had been a long day, and he was ready to go to sleep. He closed his eyes as sleep embraced him warmly…

Author's Note: Told you Sirius wasn't bad, lol. Anyway, hope you liked this chapter. It's kind of short, but I'm working on making my chapters longer. I'm hoping to have the next chapter up soon!


	6. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 6 – The Trip to the Burrow

Harry waited impatiently. Ron and his family were supposed to be here in any minute. There was no clock in the house to make him more uneasy but that didn't make him feel any better. He had his stuff packed up into Uncle Vernon's suitcase and was sitting quietly on a chair tapping his fingers on the table. This time, Ron had told Harry how he was going to arrive… and it was by Floo powder. They would enter a couple of meters away from where Harry was, so incase it went wrong, the house (or cottage if you want to call it) wouldn't end up in worse shape than the Dursley's. 

They had told him that they would come around sun down on Sunday, and it was sundown. Harry had been waiting for about half an hour. Sirius was here and he was burying his nose in the Daily Prophet. 

"What time did they say they would be here?" Sirius didn't look up from the paper. 

Harry shrugged. "Any time now. They said 'sundown' so…" his voice trailed off as he heard something in the distance. "That should be them…"

Harry stood up slightly, as if not sure to rush outside and greet the Weasley family, or to just sit down and wait for them. 

"Are you sure you don't want to come Sirius?" Harry piped. 

Sirius nodded behind the paper. "I _can't_ come, I have work to do, and I can't even be gone for about a day without some kind of bidding. I would love to, but I can't. Sorry, Harry."

Harry nodded in understanding. 

"Anyway," Sirius added, "I bet most of the Muggles, and some of the wizards don't even know that I'm innocent, I mean, I was just cleared a month ago or so. They would probably run like hell, screaming bloody murder."

"Right." Harry lifted an eyebrow. 

Just then, the door flew open. Fred and George Weasley stormed in, followed by shouts from Mrs. Weasley about manners and knocking on doors before entering; they didn't seem to hear her. 

"Hey Harry! How's it going?" The two spotted Sirius and greeted him cordially if not tensely. "Hullo Mr. Black."

Then Ron came in, right before his mother came in, still upset about the twins' demeanor. 

"Hi Harry!" Ron came rushing in at the sight of Harry. "Hey Sirius!" 

Sirius had put the paper down and was standing up nervously and shaking hands. When Molly Weasley came in, she was very polite to Sirius, but was slightly fidgety at the sight of a former Azkaban prisoner. 

When Ron saw his mom, he replied quietly, "Mum, it's ok, he's not gonna hurt ya, you know." Mrs. Weasley nodded her dubiously. 

Ron went over to Harry. "Got all your stuff?" Harry nodded and the two set off first. Harry's suitcase in Ron's hand, and Harry was trying to stuff Hedwig's cage, his broom, and his cauldron into his grip. 

"So, Harry? How was your time with Sirius? Didya have lots o' fun?" He heaved the suitcase onto a clearing where it was obvious they had used the Floo powder. The trees surrounding it were slightly withered, and a drooping a bit. Many of the branches looked as if on the verge of falling off.

Harry was quiet for a couple of seconds. "Well, it was all right I guess. Sirius is gone most of the time anyway." He sighed. "I've gotten all my summer homework done though." He added brightly.

"Whaddaya mean he's gone?" Ron helped Harry put his stuff down neatly into a pile. "I mean, what does he have to do anyway?"

"Well," Harry began, but then he remembered that Sirius made him swear not to tell anyone about his secret. "Just some…business I guess. I mean, being a freed convict of Azkaban, I guess you have some paperwork etc to finish."

Ron shrugged. "Yeah, guess so." 

They waited patiently for the rest of the family to arrive. First came the twins (as usual), then came Mrs. and Mr. Weasley. Then trailing behind was Ginny, with her hands in her pockets, dragging her feet in the dirt. 

Mr. Weasley called out to the boys. "You ready now?" They nodded. Ron added bluntly, "We were ready when we first got here." Mr. Weasley missed that remark.

"Okay then." He was cheerful and that seemed to lighten everybody up, even Ginny. "Get your stuff Harry…here, let me get that." He picked up Hedwig's cage and stepped into the Floo powder that Mrs. Weasley had set behind a clump of trees. He bellowed, "The Burrow!" and was gone. 

Then came the twins. Fred had Harry's cauldron in his arms and stepped into the transporter. "The Burrow!" and he disappeared also. George went right afterwards with Hedwig's cage.

Then Ron went. He had Harry's suitcase gripped tightly in his right hand and when he yelled "The Burrow!" Ginny went after. It was Harry's turn. 

With his broom clenched between his fingers, he stepped into the Floo powder and yelled the words that would take him to the Weasley's home. He felt dizzy and nauseous as he landed at the front of their home. 

Shortly after, came Mrs. Weasley who seemed to have a much easier time going through the Floo powder than Harry, who was still coughing from the dust. 

"You ok there, Harry?" Mrs. Weasley smiled warmly as she helped Harry up.

"Yeah, just got a little dust in my throat, that's all. Thank you." He gave one last cough and managed a forced and weak smile. 

"Ya wanna come in then?" She led Harry into the house. 

Immediately when Harry saw the Weasley's home, he felt a lot better. Though he was only going to stay for about a week, it didn't dampen his spirits. He saw that Ron and the twins were already setting his stuff away. Ginny was sitting quietly on the couch with a book. When Harry realized that she wasn't reading, but indeed staring at him, he smiled, and she smiled back uncomfortably. 

"Where do you want Hedwig's cage Harry?" George wrestled with the cage, as Hedwig tried to nip his arms. 

Harry had to laugh. "Anywhere is fine George." And then he had a second thought. "Why don't you let me handle that." He chuckled. 

George eyed him in mock suspicion. "Whatever you want…Chuckles." They both laughed gaily and continued on their work. Harry placed his broom down, and Ron immediately picked it up. 

"Harry? I'll put the broom away, in my room if ya don't mind?" Ron smiled eagerly. Harry nodded, smiling. Ron left with the broom proudly situated on his shoulder.

Harry followed him, and put Hedwig's cage next to Pigwidgeon's. Hedwig ruffled her feathers, offended in being placed so close to such a lowly owl, as she saw it. Pigwideon looked at her oddly and went on with his daily business. 

* * * * *

It was late, all of the family, and Harry were really tired. They yawned constantly. Harry made a suggestion. "Why don't we go to bed?" 

Ron nodded. "Good idea Harry." 

They both trudged off into Ron's room and pulled the covers over their heads. Before they started to fall asleep, Ron said, "We'll be going to Diagon Alley tomorrow, should be lots of fun. I wonder who our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be… I wonder if they are still gonna hire Moody after what happened last year." He yawned.

"Yeah." Harry said. "I wonder." 

Both Ron and Harry fell asleep shortly after that. 

Author's Note: OK, nothing much happened in this chapter, but I'll try to make the next chapter more interesting. TTFN!


	7. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 7 – Return of the Death Eaters

Harry and Ron woke up early in the morning despite the fact that they had went to bed pretty late at night. It was around seven o'clock when they had both opened their eyes. Both of them were pretty groggy, they didn't even talk to each other much when they got ready for breakfast. Harry had stayed with the Weasleys so many times, their home was almost like his home. 

When they went down to breakfast, they were immediately surprised that most of the family was already awake. The only person that wasn't at the table was Ginny and Mr. Weasley, but that was because Mr. Weasley was at work. Harry could tell, because of the clock in their living room. He had always like that clock…

"Mornin' Harry, Mornin' Ron." The Weasley twins said in unison. They both grinned at each other. 

"Hey Fred, George." Harry replied dully. He yawned. "Sorry, I'm still asleep." He rubbed his eyes behind his black glasses. 

Ron didn't even bother to answer, he was already starting on his breakfast rolls. Harry sat down in the seat next to Ron's and started helping himself too. He stuffed his mouth with all the delicious foods in front of him. 

Fred saw him and stared. "It's only breakfast ya know. It's not the last meal of your life." Harry stopped in embarrassment. 

Mrs. Weasley came to his rescue. "Fred, now keep that mouth of yours shut. He probably hasn't had much to eat at his godfather's." Harry nodded in agreement. 

Sirius didn't have much money, and so most of their meals were small. But Harry didn't blame him. He just got out of Azkaban, what could he do anyway? Besides, really, who would hire a former Azkaban prisoner? 

* * * * *

It was late morning. They had all finished their breakfasts and were ready to leave for Diagon Alley. Ginny had to grab a roll on the go, but after the Floo powder was finished with it, it didn't look that edible, so she gave it to a hungry dog who was sitting outside Mr. Olivander's Wand Shop. 

They were having a great time. They decided to split up into groups and meet back together in an hour. Harry and Ron headed out to the bookstore. They were looking through some Transfiguration books when they were spotted by, oh lord, Draco Malfoy.

Malfoy strutted over like a proud rooster. Showing off his new robes to everybody, about how "shiny, expensive, high quality" they were. When he saw Ron in his usual plain attire, he sneered. 

"Weasley, too bad you can't afford a robe like this. Who am I kidding? You could put your whole family's money together and you could probably only buy a square inch!" He and his goons, Goyle and Crabbe, laughed in the annoying way they did.

Ron's face lit up in anger. "Well, Malfoy, at least my parents do something decent with the money! You blackmail anyone you can find on the street, you'd blackmail a beggar if you needed to!" Ron had smoke emitting from his ears. "I'm surprised you father hasn't been kicked out of the Ministry!" 

That did it. Malfoy was mad, and I mean _mad._ He rolled up his sleeves and looked ready to sock the next person who said a word. 

Ron didn't wait. He took the nearest book and heaved it with all his might in Malfoy's face. "Take that, you scum!" Malfoy toppled backwards into a shelf, sending the books everywhere. 

Harry took this chance to pull Ron away before there was any more trouble. Ron, didn't look too pleased. "That scum, that dumbass, that…that…that _Malfoy_!" 

"Ron!" Harry shouted. "Ron, stop it! You could've gotten into big trouble back there, what were you thinking?!" Harry tried to reason with the furious boy. 

Ron shook his head. "I'm sorry Harry. I guess I wasn't thinking. I mean, I'm constantly ridiculed by Malfoy about my family's economical status, it just gets to me, that's all." He sighed. 

"Well, Ron, you don't need to be the richest and most important person in the wizarding world to be the best. Take Malfoy for example. Did money or his father's social rank make him any better?"

Ron shook his head. "Nah, Harry, guess your right. Sorry 'bout that." Harry smiled. 

"So Ron, where do you wanna go next?" He looked around. "We've pretty much been banned from the bookstore for a lifetime." 

"How about…the Care for Magical Creature's shop? I bet that has our stuff that we need for our class with Hagrid." said Ron as he headed off in that direction. 

They both walked briskly into the store. The bell jingled as they stepped inside. They both looked at their list of supplies and pointed them out to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper got them all their stuff, and they were just ready to leave when they saw Hermione. 

"Hey Harry, hey Ron!" She waved as she came towards them. "How is it with Sirius?" 

Harry shrugged. "Pretty good I guess." They continued walking. 

"What other shops do we have left to visit Harry?" Ron inquired, as Harry browsed through his list. 

"Well," Harry replied, "let's go visit the robes store. It looks like I'll need a new robe for Quidditch. You guys should head along, I'll go there myself if you want." The other two nodded and left in the other direction.

Harry started toward the robe shop. He entered, when he heard Malfoy's father talking to somebody in the corner of the shop. They spoke in hush-hush voices, which made Harry even more curious. He walked quietly, holding his moneybag so the coins wouldn't rattle. 

He crept through the many weaves of long robes hanging from their racks. Finally, he was close enough to hear them, and he could even smell the detestable smell of Lucius Malfoy's new shoes. 

Harry could hear them talking:

"Lord Voldemort, he's back. Now since he's back in power, we will return to him in numbers greater than before." The sound of Lucius Malfoy's sly voice sent chills down Harry's back. 

"Right Lucius. You go to the east and I will go towards the west. We will round up what's rest of the Death Eaters." The second voice was strangely familiar. 

"OK, we'll meet in the Shrieking Shack at midnight in a month. Got it?" Lucius Malfoy's voice was in a soft whisper. 

"In a month. Until then, Lucius, good bye." The two departed and nearly stepped on Harry. Harry was crouched beneath a rack of long dress robes. He shivered as their footsteps rang in his ears.

Harry gulped. The Death Eaters were back.

Author's Note: OK, I know that the Death Eaters were back a long time ago, but there weren't really a lot of them right? So now, with the help of Lucius Malfoy, and Anonymous, they are gonna round up _all _the rest of them and form an ally and- well, you'll see.


	8. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 8 – The Warning

Harry hurried back from his shopping and had found Ron and Hermione at the wand shop, admiring the different wands and watching people perform interesting tricks with them. Harry went up to them, right when the performer was in the middle of making a frog come out of his throat. 

"Hey. Sorry that took so long. It took a while to find the right size for me in the robe store. They were all too big." Harry said.

"No prob." Hermione's eyes were still fixed on the frog which was hopping off the stage in confusion, I guess it wasn't everyday that it was pulled out of someone's digestive system.

Ron nodded to show that he recognized Harry's presence. 

Harry pulled Ron and Hermione from the presentation. "You guys, I just heard something in the robe shop. It was Lucius Malfoy, and somebody else. I'm not sure whom it was." 

Ron wasn't paying much attention until Harry mentioned the name "Lucius Malfoy." He immediately responded. "It's not good, is it?"

Hermione was giving Harry her full, undivided attention. "What happened? What were they talking about?" 

Harry got a look of concern on his face. "Well, they said that Lord Voldemort was back… and then they said that they would try to round up the rest of the remaining Death Eaters, and meet together in a month. But I only caught some of their conversation." He shrugged.

Hermione shook her head in dismay. "This can't be good you know. What do you think was going on?" 

Ron blurted loudly. "Of course this can't be good Hermione! How can someone as smart as you not know? Harry just explained what's going on, the Death Eaters are coming back!" 

Hermione looked indignantly at Ron. "I only meant-" But she was cut off by Harry. 

Malfoy was heading their way again. He looked ready to kill. "Weasley!" He bellowed with all his might. "Weasley!" 

Ron gave Harry an alarmed look. "Shit! Now what?" He mumbled to Harry. He stepped forward. Harry shook his head. This was starting to look like one of those western movies that Dudley liked to watch all the time.

They stood in front of each other, both about a foot apart. Ron could smell Malfoy's foul breath upon his face and was wincing if not ready to barf. Malfoy launched a powerful blow at Ron's head and caught Ron's ear by an inch. 

Ron stumbled back a couple of paces before regaining his position. "So that's what you want Malfoy?!" He spat. Draco had a black eye where Ron had thrown the book at him.

Harry and Hermione both took one of Ron's arms and pulled him back. "Let go! For the love of God, let go!" Ron was struggling with all his might. His face had become as red as his hair and his ear was just as red. 

Hermione said sternly (_and she sounded a lot like Professor McGonagall_ Harry thought), "Ron, we have been through this too many times. Now, act like the 15 year old you are, or we won't let go! Right Harry?" 

Harry lifted one eyebrow. "Gee Hermione." He said sarcastically. "I'm not sure if I wanna hold Ron for all eternity." He joked. 

"Thanks Harry." Ron got up. Malfoy and his friends were still laughing. "Look at them," Ron said spitefully. "Look at them laughing their asses off." Harry and Hermione eyed each other, both looking quite incredulous.

"C'mon Ron." Hermione said. "It's not big deal. Does your ear still hurt?" She asked.

Ron shrugged. "Not too much." But anyone could see that he was very uncomfortable, and his ear was very red.

"Let's get some ice on it." Hermione said. "I would put a spell on it, but you know we're not allowed to use magic…by the way, that sucks." She smiled a little, trying to cheer Ron up.

Harry was in on the plan. "Hey, Ron, let's go. Quick, we've got to meet your family in about ten minutes." Ron nodded. 

"OK Harry. Let's go. Hermione, I think I'll be okay without the ice." Ron said. Hermione consented but looked a little hurt. 

The two boys walked toward the entrance of Diagon Alley, Harry walking quickly. He hoped by hurrying up, they wouldn't bump into Malfoy again. 

Ron was still massaging his ear tenderly, but denied it ever hurting when Harry asked him he was okay. They both met the Weasley twins at the entrance. 

"You okay Ron?" George looked at Ron with fake concern. Fred sniggered. "Didya get hit by that bully Malfoy?" 

"Shut the hell up willya?" Ron looked in no mood to answer their questions. 

He stopped rubbing his ear and tried to act as if nothing had happened. He changed the subject. "So Harry, did you hear anything else while you were there?" 

Harry shook his head. "Nope." 

"Didya hear where they were gonna meet?" Ron inquired. Harry started to shake his head, when he remembered, or he thought he remembered. 

"I think they said something, but I don't remember." He concentrated hard while he picked away at his memory. "All I remember is thinking about Hogsmeade though. It must have been somewhere in Hogsmeade."

Ron started to name random places. "The Three Broomsticks! Zonko's!" and stuff like that. But when he mentioned the Shrieking Shack, Harry's memory all fell back into place. It was like a puzzle and like rain, the pieces were just automatically falling back into the right places. 

"That's it!" cried Harry. "The Shrieking Shack. In a month." Then Harry had a thought. "Oh no." He groaned. 

Ron stared at him. "What is it?" Harry frowned. "What is Professor Lupin is still using the Shrieking Shack sometimes for his hideout? They'd kill him for sure!" 

Ron shook his head. "No, I don't think so Harry. I mean, the people said that they only heard the howls it when Lupin was still going to Hogwarts, and they stopped occurring after that. So he must have been using a different place." 

Harry nodded, but he still looked uneasy. "Well, let's hope so."

Fred and George were off on their own business. Then all of sudden, a question popped into Harry's mind that he had never thought of before. "Where's Percy been all this time?" 

The Weasley's had so many children, it was hard to keep track if a couple were missing. "Oh, Percy. He's at the office. He practically lives there. Because of the incident of Mr. Crouch, he's pretty much the head of the office. He brags about it all the time." Ron said.

Harry smirked. "Hehe, yeah, I bet." 

They waited for another ten minutes before the rest of the Weasley family appeared. All of them had many bundles under their arms, which they were trying to hold tightly. When the last person came (who was Mr. Weasley) they all left. 

* * * * *

Harry sat on Ron's bed, hugging his knees tightly. He was slightly rocking back and forth. The whole house was silent. Ron was sitting next to Harry, twiddling his fingers. 

Just then, they heard a loud crash. It was followed with a lot of shouting. All the Weasleys rushed around, trying to find the source of the crash. When they got into their living room, they gasped.

On the floor, next to many pieces of broken glass, they saw a sheet of paper tied to a stone. Mr. Weasley picked it up gingerly, as if it was going to explode in his face like a bomb, while Mrs. Weasley worried over the pieces of broken glass that used to be their window. 

The rest of the family gathered around Mr. Weasley as he untied the stone from the parchment. George eagerly took the stone from his hands, ready to read what the letter said. Shaking hands opened the note, while the others watched in complete suspense. What was inside it, made Mr. Weasley give a great yelp. The note was dropped from his hands, but what was surprising, was that, nobody dared to touch it. No one even stooped to pick it up. 

Finally, Harry bent over, and picked it up by one of it's dog-eared corners. He unfolded it, and braced himself for the worst.

Scribbled on the parchment, were only a few words:

Harry Potter

We're Back

Harry's eyes were open wide. What was that supposed to mean? Was it some kind of prank from Draco Malfoy? If it wasn't, then who sent it?

All of sudden, Harry had a bad feeling. _Could it be from the Death Eaters? _He thought. 

Ron was looking over his shoulder, and had the same expression planted on his face that Mr. Weasley had. 

"What is it Harry?" Fred and George came scurrying over to see. When they saw what it said, their jaws fell open, and they let out a squeak. Harry would have been surprised if their eyes rolled back into their heads.

Mrs. Weasley hurried over. "What is it?" Harry quickly let her see it, and stuffed it into his pocket and left. 

That night, Harry lay there, looking up at the ceiling. He didn't know what to think. He knew he should've thrown the parchment away immediately, but he couldn't. It was as if it bore some significance. _And it does._ Harry thought.

Then Harry had another thought. _If this is a prank from Malfoy and his gang, then what would they do if they found out I was hanging on their every word? _He shook himself. It wouldn't matter. He wouldn't be seeing them for another week or so. He had plenty of time to plan the perfect alibi. 

He tried not to worry about that. As he was staring at the ceiling, he noticed that there was a crack, which slightly resembled a Grim. Or was it just his imagination? He couldn't tell. 

Harry closed his eyes tightly for a couple of seconds before opening them again. The Grim was gone.

Author's Note: Hey, hope you liked this chapter. It's a little bit longer than the last one. Don't flame me for typos, I was rushing. I do a lot of my best thinking work at eleven o'clock at night… or, in this case, right before lunchtime. lmao


	9. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 9 – Hogwarts Express

Harry walked into the train station. He always loved the King's Cross train station. Perhaps because it reminded him of Hogwarts. When he lived with the Dursley's this was the most favorable place to be. Harry wished that Sirius could be home more often, so they would have more time together. He sighed wistfully.

Harry saw a couple of other Hogwart's witches and wizards walking through the wall which would transport them to Platform 9¾. He followed them, and behind Harry came Ron, and then Fred, George, and Ginny. They watched as the train pulled up. 

Harry and Ron boarded the train and went one direction, while Fred, George, and Ginny went another. Harry and Ron met Hermione sitting in an empty car. They took a seat next to her and smiled. 

"Hey Hermione." Ron and Harry said together. 

"Hello Ron, hello Harry." She said. "So, did anything interesting happen?" 

Harry's hand ran over his pocket where the letter was still sitting. Ron began, but was cut off by a sharp step on the foot by Harry. It sounded a little bit like this:

"Well, actually Hermione, you see, Harry got this- ouch!" Ron winced. "Uh…yeah, Harry got this umm… er… infection! But we got rid of it, you see." 

Hermione shot Ron and Harry a look which read that she didn't believe a single word they had said. "C'mon you guys, I can take a little crap now and then. What is it?" 

Harry and Ron looked at each other. Slowly, Harry brought out the letter that was sitting in his pocket. "Um…I got this a few days ago." He gave it to her, and she looked at it and gasped. 

"Harry, who sent this? We need to inform Dumbledore right when we get to Hogwarts." Her eyes were wide open.

Ron had to have his input, "I thought you said you could take crap. This is definitely crap." He snatched the paper away from her and returned it to Harry who was looking uncertain.

And he did it just in time. Malfoy and his group had jumped along over here, as usual. "Hello Mudblood, Beggar, and Wimp. What a lovely day." He said sarcastically.

"Why did you even come here? Desperate for some attention huh?" Ron scowled. 

"Oh no," Malfoy said. "The "Beggar" is going to beat me up! Ahhhh!" He shouted in mock fear. Goyle and Crabbe sniggered. 

Ron started to stand up, before Hermione and Harry grabbed his arms (as usual). 

Fortunately, before things got too graphic, a lady with a cart of snacks came in. Malfoy and his gang disappeared into the next car. Harry bought a few chocolate frogs, and that was all. He offered Hermione and Ron some, and together, they ate while Hermione looked through her books. 

Ron was still grumbling. "Even somebody like Dumbledore would've taken a little poke at that good-for-nothing jackass."

* * * * *

A couple of hours later, it was quiet so Harry tried to strike up a conversation. "Hermione, yesterday night, Ron and I were wondering who the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher was going to be, perhaps you know?" Harry was looking out the window, which was plastered with rain. 

The sun was beginning to come out, and the rain was stopping, but still, Harry was watching the rain drops on the window trickled down softly.

"Umm…I'm not sure, maybe Moody." She looked up from her studies and tilted her head. Her fuzzy hair fluffed up on one side, and the other looked slightly limp. She had been leaning on one side of her head, so it was smooshed. 

She looked slightly funny, and she would've looked even more hilarious if she still had her abnormally large front teeth, but she had gotten rid of them last year. 

They all shrugged and said no more. Harry sighed. His attempt to start a conversation had failed miserably. 

Another hour passed with them barely saying a thing to each other. 

All of a sudden, the train came to a jolt. "We must be here." Ron said. 

Harry and Hermione nodded, "Yeah." They stood up, ready to step off the train. As they expected, the doors opened and they got out. 

They could see crowds of kids exiting from the other cars. Professor McGonagall had sorted out the fifth years and was making them stand in a straight line. Harry, Ron, and Hermione joined them.

The rain had stopped, and the sun was out. Harry twitched uncomfortably in the humidity. When the rest of the fifth years had joined them, they left. Walking in a perfectly straight line isn't that easy, and when Minerva McGonagall is picking at your heels, it's VERY difficult. 

* * * * * 

The fifth years entered the Great Hall. Like its name, it was a great room. It was massive, and intimidating if they hadn't known it so well. The loud talking of the people echoed off the walls.

Immediately once the kids arrived, they took their seats at the different tables. Each table was separated into four groups, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Harry, Ron and Hermione sat down at the Gryffindor table. The first years had already arrived and were standing in line nervously.

Harry remembered when he had first been in that line. The Sorting Hat had placed him in Gryffindor, but only after what seemed like an eternity of thought. At the moment, he almost pitied the young children standing there, shaking and fidgety.

Then Ron gave Harry and Hermione a nudge. "Look!" Ron sounded panic-stricken. Harry turned around quickly 

"What is it Ron?" He looked around. Hermione stuck her face out from the top of her "enticing novel." She scowled, she looked, just to make sure that nothing serious was going on.. "What Ron?"

"Our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. It's Moody again! Well, at least, the _real_ Moody." He pointed toward the chair next to Dumbeldore's excitedly.

"Oh" Hermione said sarcastically. "Well, now that I've found out that the sky isn't falling, I'll go back to my book." The two boys shot her a strange look. It seemed like a big deal to them. "Girls." Ron muttered under his breath.

Without looking up from her book, Hermione replied. "I heard that _Ron_." 

Harry shrugged at Ron. Maybe girls had really sensitive ears…well, whatever it was, Harry and Ron were used to it.

The sorting started. Hermione lifted her face from her book, and Harry and Ron turned towards the torn, ragged wizard's hat which sat on it's own cushioned stool like a king. 

  
"Oh you may not think I'm pretty,  
But don't judge me on what you see,  
I'll eat myself if you can find  
A smarter hat than me.  
You can keep your bowlers black,  
Your top hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat  
And I can cap them all.  
There's nothing hidden in your head   
The Sorting Hat can't see,  
So try me on and I will tell you  
Where you ought to be  
You might belong in Gryffindor  
Where dwell the brave at heart,  
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry  
Set Gryffindors apart;  
You might belong in Hufflepuff  
Where they are just and loyal,  
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true  
And unafraid of toil;  
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,  
If you've a ready mind,  
Where those of wit and learning,  
Will always find their kind;  
Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,  
Those cunning folk use any means  
To achieve their ends.  
So put me on! Don't be afraid!  
And don't get in a flap!  
You're in safe hands (though I have none)  
For I'm a thinking cap!"

The hall rang with clapping. They started to call names for the sorting:

"ABERG, HOLLY!" A tall girl stepped up to the hat and quickly put it on. She had a poker-face on, but anyone could see that she was nervous. Then the hat called out. "RAVENCLAW!" 

The Ravenclaw table cheered loudly as the girl came and joined them. 

"AFYER, TOM!" Tom came and sat on the stool and pulled the hat over his head. He looked nervous, his brows were knitted together. "HUFFLEPUFF!" The boy looked relieved as he went and sat down at his table. 

The rest went on like this.

"BROWN, BETHANY!"… "GRYFFINDOR!"

"BREYER, HANK!"… "HUFFLEPUFF!"

"CAULDER, JOAN!"… "SLYTHERIN!"

"CORRIN, YASMINE!"… "GRYFFINDOR!"

"DEFFET, ERIC!"… "RAVENCLAW!"

"EDES, DENNIS!"… "SLYTHERIN!"

And so it went on…. By the end of the sorting, Gryffindor had increased it's number by at least a dozen. After that was finished, Dumbledore said his speech:

"I would like to welcome you to yet another year at Hogwarts! May your stay be most enjoyable and you will learn the ways of the wizards and witches in a wonderful environment. Last year there was somewhat of an incident, and this year, our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be the real Professor Moody!" There was silence, but when Dumbledore started to clap, the others started to catch on, and began to clap also.

"Usually at the beginning of the first term at Hogwarts, we like to hold a feast, as you can see, you have been set for a sumptuous repast." 

At this, Hermione scowled. She still remembered S.P.E.W, the club she had last year for house-elves. 

"I know, a lot of you are hungry, so I won't dawdle. You may begin the feast!"

When the kids heard this, they dug into the food which had magically appeared on their plate. They had many different kinds of food. Mashed potatoes, which were absolutely delicious, a very scrumptious pasta and salad, and many more. 

When it was time for dessert, most of the people complained that they were too full. But when they saw the treats laid out before them, their groans mysteriously transformed into oohs and aahhs. 

That night, Harry had stuffed himself with a pound of mashed potatoes and gravy, at least three chicken drumsticks, one huge bowl of salad, and three pieces strawberry shortcake. Ron and Hermione were just as full.

They welcomed the new students into their dorm. They introduced them to the "fat lady," and told them the password, which was "Bumblebee." The Gryffindor students stepped inside the dorm, still talking about their summers. 

They girls went one direction, and the boys, another. When Harry and Ron had finally gotten ready for bed, they sank into their soft beds. Ron drifted off into a deep sleep, but Harry was still lying in bed, awake. Most of the other kids had already gone to sleep. He could hear Neville Longbottom snoring loudly. 

He stared at the ceiling, and again, saw the Grim. For a moment, he panicked. He tried to shut his eyes and open them to get rid of it, but it didn't go away as easily now. The image was clearer and less vague. Then, right before his eyes, the Grim disappeared. The lines of the Grim seemed to become more obscure, and soon, just blended into the wall. 

Harry thought he was going crazy. The last thing he remembered before he went to sleep, was the note that was safely tucked in the pocket of his jeans', which were laying on the floor next to his bed.

Author's Note: This is a pretty long chapter, well compared to the other ones. Hope you didn't find it too boring. It took me a while to finish it…J


	10. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling

Chapter 10 – The Prediction

Harry woke up to the sound of the bird chirping. He sat up and gave a loud yawn, while he stretched. Ron was still asleep. Harry walked over to Ron's bed and shook the sleeping boy. "Huh? Oh, hey Harry." He blinked, and rubbed his eyes.

"Time to go down. We have classes. Here's your schedule." A pile of schedules had been lain out on a table in the Gryffindor dorm. 

Ron slowly dragged himself out of bed. They two changed, and got ready for breakfast. They walked down to the Great Hall. Hermione was already there. "Where have you two been?" She pondered out loud. 

"Nice to see you too." Ron grumbled. He and Harry sat down next to Hermione and ate their breakfast which consisted of bacon, toast and cereal. 

Hermione tapped her fingers on the table loudly and conspicuously. "Hurry up, will you? We don't want to be late for the first day of classes." Harry and Ron stuffed their mouth with their remaining cereal. 

Hermione giggled as she watched the two boys practically choke on their breakfast. They hurried down the stairs to their first class. Potions… "Ugh." Harry moaned. The very first class of his fifth year at Hogwarts was his least favorite. 

He would even rather sit through Professor Trelawney's choking fumes than listen to Snape pick at the Gryffindors, especially Neville Longbottom, who seemed to always be doing something wrong with Hermione whispering in his ears all the time.

The three friends rushed downstairs into their classroom, or a dungeon I should say. It was chilly and they rubbed their arms, as if wanting to brush the coldness away. When they reached their classroom, everyone was already there. 

"Hello." Snape said in his snakelike voice. "You are _late_." He made late sound like 3rd degree murder. "Five points off Gryffindor," They groaned. Snape took much entertainment from this, it was his daily hobby. "Each." Ron rolled his eyes, and Hermione looked ready to panic.

Only their first day at Hogwarts, and they had already lost Gryffindor 15 points. Harry was exasperated. They sat next to each other at the back of the classroom. 

Snape started his lesson.

* * * * *

"Neville." Snape croaked. "Neville Longbottom." He ran his thin fingers through his oily black hair. Everyone turned to the chubby boy with the scarlet face. "What do you think you are doing?" Snape had an annoying way of accenting every negative word when talking to Neville or any other Gryffindors in his class.

Neville choked. "Yes sir?" He didn't even dare look up at Snape.

"Look at your Potion." Snape smirked. "Now look at everyone else's. What is the difference?" He looked at Neville expectantly.

"Sir?" Neville squeaked.

"You heard me." The Slytherins laughed, Snape didn't bother to silence them.

Neville looked as red as a tomato. "Er… Well, mine has…umm… dark green blotches, and mine isn't bubbling as much." He winced. He looked as if Snape was going to hit him, and telling from the look on Snape's face, there was a good chance of that.

"I am surprised a boy of your intellect could even figure that out." Malfoy could be seen snickering maliciously behind Snape's back.

"Now," Snape said silkily. "I'll give you one more chance. If you get it right, you won't be punished. If you fail, Gryffindor will lose…hmmm… how about… _20 points_?"

Even the Slytherins gasped. It was difficult to lose that many points in a class for getting an assignment wrong. 

Neville gulped. "Y-Yes sir." Harry's hands were becoming clammy. _Bullshit! First day, first class, and we've already lost 35 points! At this rate, we'll lose three years' worth of points by the end of the month. _He gulped also. 

Harry concentrated hard. _C'mon Neville, you can do it. C'mon, just get it right! _It was as if he thought he was telepathic with Neville. 

The whole class was watching Neville, and Snape seemed to want to encourage that. Harry prayed as Neville started to pick out his ingredients and toss them into the potion. 

His hands were shaking as he picked up his leaves and crumbled them up. He flung into the dark red potion as he mixed it cautiously like it was something he didn't want to break.

Snape frowned menacingly as he saw that Neville was doing it correctly. He glowered even further when he realized, that Neville _did_ do it perfectly. 

"Right then, Longbottom. Next time I have to do this again, I'll take ten points off Gryffindor automatically. Class dismissed." The kids started to leave the dungeon. 

The Gryffindors were patting Neville on the back, while the Slytherins were laughing their heads off at Neville's clumsiness, but scowling at the fact that 20 points _weren't_ taken off Gryffindor.

Harry, Ron and Hermione trudged on to Divination. Professor Trelawney had talked to Professor McGonagall about Hermione's absence, and Professor McGonagall urged Hermione to give Divination another chance this semester. Hermione had reluctantly agreed.

Harry entered the familiar room. Almost immediately, the smoke took effect on his brain. He started to drift off to sleep as he sat down. 

Out of a dark mist, appeared Professor Trelawney. Her large eyes darted off everyone in the class, making them nervous.

"Welcome children." Her soft but sharp voice woke Harry up. "Today, we shall be continuing a class we didn't finish last semester in Divination. It is a more advanced level, we shall foretell the future with crystal balls." 

Harry groaned. He didn't want to sign up for Divination, but because Professor McGonagall had convinced Hermione to give it another try, Harry and Ron decided to accompany her, though they despised the class themselves.

"Lavender," Professor Trelawney said quietly. "Would you please distribute these small crystal balls please? Oh, and by the way, please hurry, I will have to leave quite soon." Lavender Brown eagerly stood up and did her bidding.

Lavender stopped. "Excuse me, Professor, but there are not nearly enough for the whole class." Professor Trelawney nodded sleepily. "Yes, good observation. Everyone will have to pair up in groups of three." 

Harry, Ron and Hermione automatically moved their desks toward one another. They took their crystal ball from Lavender and stared at it stupidly. 

"I will give out the instructions but then, I will have to leave immediately, for Dumbledore himself shall call for me." She smiled. 

"As you may remember, to read from a crystal ball takes a lot of mental strength. You must stare into it, and try to see past the crystal orb which is placed right before you. I will leave you for about half and hour, but I will return to offer you help, and to dismiss class."

At that very moment, Dumbledore came in. "Excuse me Professor Trelawney, I know this is short notice, but you need to come with me. Sorry if I have surprised you." Professor Trelawney shook her head. 

"Oh no headmaster. I could see it coming…" Dumbledore lifted an eyebrow in doubt. "Whatever you say, whatever you say."

About fifteen minutes later, Harry, Ron and Hermione were still staring into the crystal ball, but seeing nothing. "Er…" Harry was about to nod off to sleep. "Do you see anything Ron?"

Ron shook his head. "Nope, do you see anything Hermione?" Hermione shook her head also in dismay. "No, I can't see a thing! How about you Harry?" She turned to Harry. 

"Harry?" She rolled her eyes. "Harry!" She shook Harry who was already asleep. Harry woke up with a jerk. "Oh, sorry guys." 

This went on for another fifteen minutes. The three of them gazing into a crystal orb, seeing nothing. 

Professor Trelawney came in so quietly that nobody noticed until she cleared her throat to get their attention. 

"Ahem!" She coughed. "Does anybody need help?" Almost the whole class raised their hands. She smiled. "My, my. We have seemed to accumulate a very small amount of true foreseers." Harry sighed. 

Harry had his hands raised, though he really didn't want Professor Trelawney's help. According to her, Harry had more lives than a cat, and had died more times than Jesus Christ. 

Professor Trelawney came to their table. "You need help, yes?" All three of them nodded grimly. "Now let me see…" She murmured. 

"Ah!" She exclaimed. "You, Mr. Weasley, will have a reunion with someone you have not seen for a very long time indeed." Ron rolled his eyes.

Professor Trelawney didn't notice that. "And you Ms. Granger, will uncover some wonderful secrets of a true friend." Hermione tapped her fingers impatiently.

"And… Harry." She continued. Harry groaned. "Am I going to die, Professor?" He said with a tinge of sarcasm. The professor shook her head. Ron whispered to Hermione, "Well, that's a first." Hermione nodded.

"Harry, Harry. You will regain someone very dear to your heart. You have lost this individual already once, but you will see that person again…" Then Professor Trelawney stopped. 

* * * * *

Harry, Ron and Hermione were leaving class still talking about the strange and wild predictions that Professor Trelawney had given them. Harry was oblivious to all the conversation around him. He was thinking about what Professor Trelawney had said. 

He had a vague idea of whom she may have been talking about…. his mother. As they walked down the staircase into their dorms, to get ready for Transfiguration, Harry reached for the letter which was still in his pocket. "Mother." He whispered softly to himself. But Ron and Hermione had heard what he had said.

"What was that Harry?" Hermione asked him. 

Harry shook his head. "Nothing, nothing." Hermione turned to Ron, but Ron shrugged and shook his head. "Are you sure nothing's wrong?" Ron piped at Harry.

"I'm sure, I'm sure. Just- Oh, it's nothing." He said. But this was a lie. There _was something_ going on…

Author's Note: I know there's not much going on about Lily Potter right now, so I decided to add a little tidbit. But as you will notice in some of the Harry Potter books, some things are put off for a while. Anyway, don't worry, there will be some stuff about her.


	11. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling

Chapter 11 – The Dark Mark

Harry had just come back from his last class of the day. He was exhausted. 

Even though it was the first day of classes, the teachers seem to ignore that, and piled them with more homework then ever. Of course, Hermione got down to work at once.

"We have until Friday to finish our assignments, don't you think you should get working?" Hermione picked at the two boys who were sitting at a game of chess. Ron sighed.

"Hermione, I'm worn out, I'm not gonna work on my homework right now okay?" Hermione shook her head in disappointment. "Do you want me to say that again?" Ron snapped.

"Ron's right." Harry agreed. "We're a little tired, maybe tomorrow. I mean, we already finished one of them." Ron nodded. "Yeah Hermione."

Hermione shrugged in indifference. "Whatever." 

Harry and Ron finished their chess game (and Ron won). They both headed down to the Great Hall for dinner. The meal contained some pasta, a Muggle kind of food called "cheeseburgers," and a salad. 

The desert was also delicious, but Hermione left before it was served to go to the library for further studying.

When Ron and Harry were alone, Harry started a conversation. "Um… Ron, you know today, when Professor Trelawney made those weird predictions?" 

Ron nodded absentmindedly. "Yeah? What about it?" He was staring out the window distractedly.

"Well, I think what she meant was… um… er, well, my mother." Harry gulped. Ron spat out his water. "Your mum? Yeah, right!" 

"No, I mean it, Ron." He explained what Sirius had said to him, leaving out the parts that Sirius was a spy for Dumbledore. 

He clarified all the evidence, and when he had seen the Grim, twice. Once at Ron's house, the other time was at Hogwarts. 

Ron listened quietly, nodding at all the right times, and gasping in all the right places. Harry whispered. "I don't think I should tell Hermione right now. I mean, she'll probably tell Professor McGonagall, and I don't want to be put in the infirmary when I just started, and anyway, Malfoy and the whole Slytherin house will make fun of me when they find out."

Ron nodded in agreement. "Yeah, let's not tell her until a while later." They both agreed immediately. 

Hermione came in about half an hour later. 

Both of the boys were reading. Harry's nose was stuck in a Quidditch book, and Ron's freckled face was in a chess book.

She sighed. Harry knew what she was thinking. She was probably thinking that they should read something worthwhile, but she hardly knew how exciting Quidditch could be to the Gryffindor's seeker. And Ron loved to play chess, probably because he was so good at it.

When Hermione came in, Harry and Ron looked up. "What did you do at the library today Hermione?" Ron asked. 

Hermione looked stupefied. "For Heaven's sake Ron. What do you think?" She shook her head in sheer amazement. 

"Sorry!" Ron grumbled. 

* * * * *

A couple of days later, after third period, something strange happened…

"Hey Ron, Hey Harry!" Hermione called out to them. Seamus Finnigan was with her, along with Neville Longbottom. They also called out to Harry and Ron, and joined them. 

As they were walking to Herbology with Professor Sprout, Neville dropped his bag and his books fell everywhere. 

He whimpered ands stooped to pick them up. Harry, Ron, and Seamus tried to help him, but he just became red in the face. 

Hermione told them to go and she would help him with his bags. 

They nodded and went to class. But the strange thing was, Neville nor Hermione ever showed up for class, and everyone knew that Hermione would never miss a class, and Herbology was Neville's best class, so nobody had an explanation for this occurrence.

When class was dismissed that day, everyone went looking for Hermione and Neville, well, most everyone. 

Harry overheard Malfoy talking, "Maybe father came to finish that Mudblood and clumsy blockhead off, serves them right." Harry had to do everything to keep Ron from jumping on his and "kicking serious Malfoy ass." 

Harry, Ron, Lavender, Parvati, Dean, Seamus all went looking for Hermione and Neville. First they searched the restrooms, then they checked the dorms. 

Finally, they looked in the place where Neville had dropped his books, though they doubted that they would still be there.

But, sure enough, Neville and Hermione were there. Both were lying on the ground. They were motionless, though still alive, as Ron proved by feeling their pulse. 

Harry ordered Seamus, and Dean to go get help, while he and Ron stayed with them. 

They sat there for about five minutes before Professor McGonagall came running up the corridors, followed by Dumbledore, who had never before escaped a walk in front of his students.

Madam Pomfrey lagged behind, but reached the two fainted people just after Dumbledore. 

Harry stuttered. "Neville dropped his b-books and then Hermione h-helped him pick them up and told us to go to class, and they n-never came." Ron nodded with a grieved look on his face. 

Dumbledore furrowed his brow. "I see. Madam Pomfrey, please take these two to the infirmary. And you two," He pointed to Ron and Harry. "Go back to class. I don't think your friends will be in too much trouble. Nothing that Madam Pomfrey here can't mend."

Harry and Ron nodded silently and continued on their way to their dorm. Before they had even gone down the hallway, they heard Madam Pomfrey gasp. They turned around and went to see what the problem was. 

They looked down on at Neville and Hermione and saw something that made their blood curl. 

On the back of Hermione's neck was the Dark Mark, and in a silver liquid (which was unmistakably unicorn's blood) someone had written "The Dark Lord has returned." The letters shone and sparkled evilly as the shiny, shimmering fluid ran down the back of Hermione's robes.

Author's Note: Ooh, creepy. Hehe. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter, it's a little weird, but oh well. 


	12. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 12 – The Mysterious Grove

As Harry walked off to the Gryffindor dorm, his mind raced with thoughts. _The Dark Lord? I saw him last semester, could he be in Hogwarts? _He shook his head. _Dumbledore was here. How could Lord Voldemort be here? Lord Voldemort was afraid of Dumbledore, how could he be in Hogwarts?_ _It's a crazy idea. _He thought. _Right?_

Ron was just as stumped. He had no idea, he thought Hogwarts was safe, but now? They both exchanged odd looks. It had been a strange day, yet they had to pretend like everything was fine. 

When they reached the Gryffindor room, they sighed. Nobody was there. They picked up their stuff and left right away in fear of meeting somebody and having to make up a stupid excuse for Hermione and Neville's strange absence that day.

When they got to class, nobody asked why Neville or Hermione were late. They just ignored the fact and by the look on the Professor Flitwick's face, he already knew. They sat down together at the back of the classroom and said nothing.

The Charms class went on as if nothing happened, but Professor Flitwick stuttered and his voice was squeakier than usual. Harry couldn't concentrate, and neither could Ron. 

Harry sat, scribbling on his parchment. Many times, when he had been writing notes, he ended up writing Hermione's name, and occasionally, Neville's. 

At the end of the class, the only things that Harry had actually written down that were of great importance to his class, was "The Fire Charm was created by Nicholas Flamel, who was also the creator of the Sorcerer's Stone…" and the rest became scribbles.

That night, Harry lay on his bed awake, thinking about Hermione. Ron was awake too, because Harry could hear him fidgeting in his bed. 

* * * * *

By eight o' clock in the morning, Harry still had gotten barely a wink of sleep. He yawned, while Ron shook him awake. 

"C'mon Harry!" Ron looked like he hadn't slept much either. His eyes were red, and the bags under his eyes were large and dark. He yawned also. 

"Harry! ***Yawn*** Get up! ***Yawn*** We're gonna be late! ***Yawn***" Harry barely stirred. With his eyes partly open, Harry mumbled. "I'm tired Ron. Five more minutes…" But Ron had already started pulling Harry off the bed with all his might. 

"Let's go! ***Yank***" And at once, Harry fell to the floor. "Ok, ok, I'm getting up." Harry mumbled grouchily. They both got dressed and headed off into the Great Hall. 

When they got there, they sat down for breakfast, and immediately noticed the two empty seats, and they lost their appetites and left. 

Once they had grabbed their stuff, they went to their first Defense Against the Dark Arts class with the real Professor Moody. Everyone was nervous at first, but soon realized that this Moody was pretty much exactly the same as the other one. 

Their first lesson was about defending yourself against some of the Unforgivable Curses. Neville's body shook as he performed the defense spell which had been put upon his parents in front of the whole class. Harry was barely paying attention. 

He stared absentmindedly out the window and into the Forbidden Forest. He was drawing over his paper and poking holes through the parchment. All of a sudden, he saw something mysterious move in the bushes of the forest. He jumped slightly. 

It looked like a dementor, but Harry didn't fall at the sight of it. It was in hooded black robes and walked slowly, dragging it's cloak around it's frail and thin body, but in it's right hand, was a wand.

The mysterious body disappeared into the dark tall trees.

At the end of the class, Harry told Ron what had happened. As they walked in the direction of Astronomy, they talked about what Harry had seen.

"Are you sure about it Harry?" Ron inquired. "Maybe you fell asleep." 

Harry shook his head. "No, I'm pretty sure it was real." Ron shrugged.

"What was it then?" Ron looked a little bit scared. "Did you see it well enough?"

Harry ran his fingers through his messy black hair. "No, I didn't. It looked like a dementor but it had a wand in it's hand, and I didn't collapse."

"Well," Ron began. "Maybe a dementor can have a wand, and maybe the reason you didn't faint is because it was too far away." But Harry denied it. "When I was like fifty feet off the ground and very far away from the dementors on the Quidditch field, I still fell right?"

Ron didn't say anything. Both of them were silent the rest of the way to the tower. 

* * * * *

That night, Harry turned in his sleep uncomfortably. In his dream, he was walking through the Forbidden Forest, looking for something, though he didn't know what. He walked briskly, not stopping for anything, even when his shoe got caught on a long tree root and it fell off, or when his robes were sloshed with mud.

Though he was searching for something, he was also running away from something. But he didn't know what either. He felt stupid running away from nothing. Then, he tripped into a pit of sand, and he started to sink. He panicked. 

He turned around and found what he was searching for, and what he was running from. Standing behind him, was the mysterious figure. It lifted it's hood, and Harry immediately recognized the red thin eyes, and the snake-like features. 

Harry reached for his wand but he was too late. Lord Voldemort got his first. But before he could say the words, "Avada Kedavra," Harry had taken a handful of the sand and threw it at Voldemort's eyes, clouding him from seeing Harry. 

While he still had the chance, Harry pulled himself with all his might out of the pit and ran as fast as he could, his legs feeling like blocks of wood. He sprinted across the dirt ground as fast as he could. He stopped when he reached a grove. 

It was a circle of tall majestic trees, and the moon shone through the top. He gazed up at the shining pale moon and it seemed to hold him in a silent trance. He fell onto his knees and did not run when the Death Eaters surrounded him, or when Lord Voldemort came and laughed evilly.

The voices of the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord were barely audible to Harry's ears. They seemed to be speaking in a different world, as if from the other side of a glass wall. He listened but could hear scarcely anything.

"Foolish boy, did you think you could beat me? It is only luck that has brought you to your fifteenth birthday." Lord Voldemort laughed. 

The Death Eaters murmured in agreement. One of the voices could be recognized as Lucius Malfoy's. 

Harry remained in his strange trance-like position. His eyes were glazed over, open, yet blind. They were glued to the silver moon above him. 

"Tonight," Lord Voldemort emphasized every word. "Tonight, you will fall beneath my feet, suffer in my wrath, and live no more. Your mother will be sorry she gave you her life when you are only to die fourteen years later." He roared with murderous laughter, which even made the Death Eaters shrink back.

"Your friends are here." Harry turned around slowly, with all his strength, resisting the power of the beautiful yet silent moon. With his wand, Voldemort pointed to the bodies of Hermione and Neville, and to Harry's oblivious surprise, they were alive, but in terrible shape. "They will watch you die!" 

"And look here." Voldemort said even more corruptly. A pair of Death Eaters heaved a figure into the center next to Harry. It lay there, lifeless. Harry recognized it as his mother. 

He didn't care, he wanted to, but he felt as if a dementor had sucked all the feelings out of him, he just couldn't bring himself to feel compassionate, or to cry, or to show the love that he wanted to have for his mother and his friends.

The shimmering moon shed light off Harry's glasses, as he seemed to crumple into a heap on the ground. His mind was full of thoughts he couldn't sort out and make use of. He wanted to just fall to the earth and die, give up, and fall into an eternal sleep.

He stared at the moon, his eyes piercing a hole through it. He seemed already dead. Voldemort raised his wand, and shouted the words that Harry had been waiting for. 

Then there was a blinding flash of light, and Harry woke up. 

Harry was sweaty, his forehead was burning up, and his scar felt as if being pierced with a sharp rusty dagger. He rubbed his head and tried to calm his racing breath. 

Only moments later, Ron woke up. "You all right Harry?" Ron stood over his bed, furrowing his brow at Harry. 

"Yeah, I'm fine." He rubbed his head again. 

He went down to breakfast after getting ready for classes. His robes were on him, but he was in a very sad attire. His robes hung over him limply, his hair was even more ruffled than usual, and his glasses were very close to falling apart. 

Dean Thomas peered across the table. "Harry, you okay?" Harry nodded miserably. He still hadn't told them about the dream

Seamus Finnigan shook his head. "You look like you just slept through a tornado or something." Ron agreed. "Gee Harry, are you sure you don't wanna talk to Professor McGonagall into letting you stay from classes today? You look in terrible shape. I don't think you could live through another of Snape's insults." 

Harry just shrugged the comments and questions off. "It's okay. Halloween is almost here, I can last. I'll take a good rest when it comes." Ron nodded his head. "Whatever you say Harry. I just don't think-" Harry lost it.

"Damn it! I'm fine! Really!" He yelled, and everybody jumped out of their seat at least an inch. Even Ginny Weasley looked over in surprise. "It doesn't matter okay?" 

All of them shrugged. "OK Harry." Ron muttered under his breath.

Harry sighed. His scar was still hurting, but who would care anyway, he thought. He played with his cereal and all was quiet.

Author's Note: Sorry I haven't written in a while, I was on a trip. This is kind of a strange chapter, but I'll have the next part up soon… I hope. Well, hope you liked it anyway. 


	13. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 13 – Filch and Mrs. Norris 

Harry and Ron walked off to their next class, Potions. Harry was hardly in the mood to talk, even to Ron. Potions would be Hell. 

They took their seat as close to the back as they could, away from Snape, or from Malfoy…but no luck.

Even if Snape couldn't be following them around at the back of the classroom, Malfoy and his gang could. Despite the fact that he was Snape's favorite student, he sat near Harry and Ron, in the back of the damp and dark classroom, his face grinning with such indiscreet pleasure, that Harry thought he was going to barf.

Malfoy launched the first attack. "Where's your Mudblood friend Potter?" Ron rolled his eyes, but Harry couldn't even move. He was _sure_ he was going to barf now. 

"Shut your asshole Malfoy." Ron came to the rescue, since Harry wasn't feeling well. "Or, no, is that your mouth? Sorry, I couldn't tell the difference." He shot a triumphant look at Draco Malfoy, while he listened to the other Gryffindor's snicker.

Malfoy's eyes widened. "Shut up Weasley, I wasn't asking you. The all famous Harry Potter doesn't need a body guard." He glared maliciously at Ron and Harry.

Crabbe and Goyle smiled their stupid smiles, which made them look even more like gorillas than ever. Harry put his face against the desk and tried not to think about Malfoy, or his stupid and pointless remarks.

Snape seemed purposely to wait until he realized that Malfoy was finished harassing Harry and Ron to start the lesson. 

"Ahem." He cleared his throat. "Today, I would like to begin this lesson with a potion which is mainly used for regaining blood." He stirred his slightly bubbling cauldron with ease. 

Harry looked up. He took his cauldron and book. Snape distributed small bits of roots, the heart of a dragon, the eye of what seemed to be a mermaid, and something which was indistinguishable. 

Ron poked suspiciously at it with his wand, and inspected it while Harry just plopped them into his cauldron thoughtlessly. In a moment, Snape was breathing his disgusting breath over Harry's shoulder.

"Mr. Potter!" He yelled, so _everyone_ could hear. Harry jumped. "Yes, sir?" 

Snape smirked. "Why, Mr. Potter, is your potion a sickly green color, and why does it smell of dog shit?" He seemed to make no effort to speak civilly. 

Harry pushed his glassed farther up his nose. "Er, sir?" He didn't understand. He had done everything right, or so he thought. 

Snape ran his fingers through his oily, slick black hair. "Potter. You are as_ stupid _as your clumsy friend, Longbottom." He made sure to accent the word "stupid," as if Harry couldn't understand.

Harry head filled with absolute hatred for Snape. He stood up rashly. "Neville was _not_ stupid! Professors like you made him scared and constantly-" He was cut off harshly.

"Shut up, Potter!" He waved his hand, as if to cut off the sentence. "Because of your impulsive behavior, Gryffindor will lose…" He paused, straining his ear to enjoy the sound of the Gryffindors gasp and turn their heads in dismay.

Snape swiftly slapped his bony and large hand onto the table. "_Thirty _points!" The Gryffindors gasped. Ron stood up indignantly. "Professor Snape! Thirty points? That's not fair! You never take any points of Sly-" 

Snape interrupted. "Make that thirty-five." Harry could hear the Slytherins snicker, and Snape's disgusting smile seemed to laugh along with them.

* * * * *

It was late at night, Harry and Ron were lying in their beds, not asleep, but wishing they were. They whispered to each other quietly, in the stillness of the dormitory. 

"Let's go to the infirmary. I want to see Hermione." Harry said quietly, as if afraid for anyone to hear them. 

Ron nodded in the dark. "Yeah, let's go." 

Immediately, as if they were on cue, they threw on the invisibility cloak and left into the dark corridors. 

They tried to hide the sound of their slippers as they walked as quietly as they could. Once Ron almost ran into a suit of armor because he tripped on the trim of the cloak.

As they neared the infirmary, they grew more nervous. Did they really want to see Hermione? What if they saw something they would regret? Harry tried to brush off the thoughts as they walked through the door.

They tiptoed across the room, searching the beds for Hermione. "Hermione?" Ron whispered. "Hermione?" 

Harry nudged him. "Shut up Ron! You're talking to a pillow!" Ron's face turned as red as his fiery red hair, and he kept searching. 

Finally, they found what looked like Hermione. Harry got down on his knees to get a better look. "Yup, I think we found her." They put their candle against the table and got a good look at her. She was sleeping, or unconscious, how can you tell? 

Harry put his head to her chest, "She's alive all right. I can hear her heart beating." Hermione looked in pretty good shape. 

Her hair was fluffy (as usual), her face was a little bit pale, but that was probably because the room was so cold. Her eyes were closed, but then she abruptly opened them.

"Harry, Ron! What are you doing here?" She sat up and knocked her head against Harry's. "Ouch!" 

"Sorry." Harry mumbled. "Are you okay Hermione?" 

"Yea, I'm fine." She shook her head. "So, how's-wait! You're not supposed to be here!" She said, as she just remembered.

Ron shrugged. "Yeah, we know. We just wanted to say hi." Harry nodded.

Hermione laughed. "Pfft! It's midnight, why would you want to say hi to me now?" Ron and Harry looked at each other. They didn't answer. 

"So, er, what happened that day?" Harry scratched his head. "I mean, that day when you and Neville, you know…" Hermione chuckled. 

"Yeah, I know. Actually, I don't really know what happened. I was just bending over to help Neville when I heard a high pitched voice yell out a spell, I think, and then all I remember is seeing Neville collapse before I completely blacked out." She tilted her head thoughtfully.

Ron jumped in. "But did you see who it was?" Hermione shook her head. "Of course not. Whoever it was, was a very powerful and mysterious wizard, he wouldn't have let us see him." She acted as if this was something obvious.

"Oh, er right." Ron mumbled. He shrugged at Harry. 

"Um, well, Hermione, I don't know if anybody told you…" Harry wasn't sure if he should tell Hermione about the Dark Mark. 

"On your robes…" Hermione became impatient. "What, Harry? What is it?" Harry rubbed his hands. "They found the Dark Mark." He felt much better after saying it, but he started to regret it. 

Hermione's eyes were almost as large as her open mouth. "W-What? You're kidding! Tell me your kidding?" After looking at Ron and Harry's faces, she sighed. "You're not kidding."

"Oh my God." She said more to herself than anybody. She clamped her hands to her open mouth. "Do you know what this means?" She was talking while trying to calm down.

"Only too well." Ron said quietly. Harry shook his head. "But, I thought Voldemort was afraid of Dumbledore?" Ron flinched slightly. "Oh sorry, Ron." Harry said.

"I dunno." Hermione shook her head sadly. "Who else would have put a spell on me? Crouch's son is pretty much out of the question…" 

Ron nodded. "Yeah, I guess so." 

Just then Madame Pomfrey came in. "Oh, dear! What are you doing? Get out please! Shoo!" She looked worried as she slammed the door behind Harry and Ron's back. 

"I think we should be heading back now." Ron suggested mildly. "Yeah." They turned around in the direction of their dorms. 

It wasn't long before they heard a man yell. They turned abruptly to face the spot where the sound had come from. Then they heard the all too familiar meow of a cat. 

They both yelled at the same time. "Filch and Mrs. Norris!" Harry's eyes looked frantic. "Should we go and help them? Or should we go and act like nothing happened?" 

Harry closed his eyes in terror. If they went to help, they would probably get in trouble for being out here, but if Filch and Mrs. Norris were really in trouble…

Ron and Harry looked at each other in the same time. They could hear the voices of Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall. They both thought the same thing… "Run!" 

They sprinted across the corridor and rushed into their dorms. They almost forgot to give the password to the Fat Lady and instead, almost ran straight through her. 

The next day, they found the reason of the incident. Filch and Mrs. Norris had gone through the same thing that Hermione and Neville had. 

Harry and Ron sneaked a peek at Filch, and almost collapsed. The Dark Mark in unicorn blood was dripping down the face of Filch and Mrs. Norris had the Dark Mark upon her underside. 

The odd thing about this time, was that there was not only unicorn blood, there was a dark red liquid which could be distinguished as human blood. It mixed with the silver, and became a disgusting metallic orange. It left trails on the carpet, and the weird thing, was that the blood dissolved once it touched the floor. 

Just a moment later, Hagrid came rushing inside to talk to Dumbledore. He was yelling loudly, "Dumbledore! I need t' talk t' Dumbledore!" He ran off. 

A couple of minutes later, Dumbledore and Hagrid left and walked onto the school grounds outside. 

Harry and Ron rushed to the window and tried to find a good spot as they tried to squeeze between Lavender and Ginny to get a better view.

They saw two men leaning over a dead unicorn. 

Author's Note: Sorry I'm not writing as much… It's been kind of hard keeping up w/ you people! Slow down! 


	14. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 14 – The Prank

Harry was excited, today, was there trip to Hogsmeade. Thanks to Sirius, he didn't have to sneak in with his Invisibility Cloak. He and Ron were going to play a prank on Malfoy and his friends. Hermione had left the infirmary by that time. At first she wouldn't go in on it, and even threatened to tell Professor McGonagall, but she ended up agreeing to take part.

First after casually getting a butterbeer, they sneaked off into Zonko's to grab some stuff they believed would send Malfoy through the roof. They giggled quietly, well, Hermione tried not to. They stuffed their already full bags with everything they could find. 

Ron's eyes opened with amazement. "Gawd, Harry, they have everything! Look at this! And this… and this… and this…" His eyes grew larger with every thing he pointed out. He stopped. "I wonder what this is…" He picked up an odd looking object which reminded Harry very much of a fork, except it was made out of redwood, it was wider, and the handle was much shorter. 

They inspected it, Hermione took it gently from Ron's hands and examined it closely. All of a sudden the strange thing exploded, sending little confetti pieces all over the room. Hermione gasped. A couple of moments later, Hermione shook her head. "What are they trying to do? Give us a heart attack?" She spoke in a raspy, hoarse voice, as if she was just getting over the shock.

"Yeah, Hermione." Ron said. "What didya think?" He and Harry laughed.

Once they had stuffed their bag with everything they thought they would like seeing being shoved in Malfoy's face, they headed on out. 

"This trick better be worth the five Galleons each that we paid!" Hermione said more to herself than anybody else. Harry and Ron shook their heads. 

They lugged their heavy bags back to The Three Broomsticks. They chose a table carefully as far away as Malfoy as possible. "So," Ron inquired impatiently. "When do we… you know?" His eyes had a look enthusiasm and excitement. 

"At Potions." Harry whispered. "Potions?!" Hermione shrieked. "Potions? Snape will have our heads mounted on his wall!" 

"Listen Hermione," Harry said quietly. "It will be a little harder to pull off, but if we do manage to do it, the outcome will be twice as humiliating for Malfoy! It will make Malfoy look so bad, that Snape will _have_ to take points off the Slytherin house!" Hermione quietly agreed. "Well, if it makes Malfoy look bad enough, I guess…" She still looked dubious.

"Just do what I say…" They all gathered their heads together and whispered as softly as they could. "OK, tomorrow, we'll sneak the "Bombshell Pepper" into his potion, unless of course, we're working in partners. If we are, we have to find some excuse to leave the room before the pepper explodes…" Bombshell Pepper was a new product that could dissolve into even the thickest liquids, and would explode once set. 

* * * * *

The three of them sat innocently at Potions, trying to ignore the stern looks Snape kept throwing at them. As usual, Malfoy chose a seat where he could spy on them from the best angle, which was next to Hermione. She made a fuss at first having to be the one to do the trick, but she consented after Harry and Ron almost got on their knees begging. 

Hermione couldn't help but feel nervous. She twiddled the drawstring of the bag full of Bombshell Pepper. She had the coldest feet in history. She waited for the right time, when Harry would give her the cue. Malfoy had his usual smirk planted on his pale face, his eyes were following Hermione's every movement. 

Harry and Ron shot each other worried looks. "Do ya think Hermione can do it?" Ron whispered to Harry. Harry shrugged. "I guess we'll find out." 

It was halfway through the lesson and Hermione still hadn't found a way to sneak the pepper into Malfoy's potion. She waited for about another ten minutes, when she spotted that Malfoy had turned his back to look at Goyle and Crabbe. Snape was busying himself with his papers on the messy desk. She took this chance.

Hermione loosened the string on the bag and grabbed a pinch of the gray pepper and tossed some into the bubbling cauldron. She sat down as quickly and silently as she could, trying not to catch any unwanted attention. Ron and Harry smiled at her. She tucked the bag of Bombshell Pepper safely away in her bags and smiled back, relieved.

Harry and Ron were also relieved, Snape hadn't seen it, neither had Malfoy, and they were home free. They high-fived each other under the table, and continued with their potion. 

All was quiet, wait… there was some bubbling, hold on… yes, all was quiet… enjoy the silence- KABLAM!!!!!! 

Everyone turned to look to see what had caused all the commotion. They saw a black-faced Malfoy, and a blown-up cauldron, and a thick liquid dripping down side of the table. Snape turned around sharply. "What is the meaning of this?" He looked around. "Who did this to Malfoy?" 

Harry wasn't surprised. Of course, Snape would rather put anyone in detention than Malfoy, Draco's father probably paid Snape big bucks not to. Snape's piercing and beady black eyes scanned the room silently, like an eagle pursuing it's prey.

"Everybody, come here!" He barked. "And bring your wands." Everyone did as they were told. Snape took each wand and said harshly "_Prior Incantato_!" Each wand showed a little shadow of the last spell they had performed. Harry stared at the different spell everyone had done. Neville had performed a spell for Transfiguration, Dean had performed a spell to stop Neville from snoring, Lavender had used a spell for Herbology… and so on.

When Snape was done checking, none of the wands had any history for a spell which would have made Malfoy's potion explode. He ran his hands through his shiny hair like he always did when frustrated. Finally, he let everybody sit down. 

Snape picked up Malfoy's potion and inspected it closely. "Hmm, Malfoy? Can you explain this?" He said in a stern but not spiteful voice. Malfoy sputtered. "No! It wasn't me! It was, it was…" Malfoy looked around trying to find the perfect person to blame. "It was Potter! I saw him!" Malfoy's lips curled into a smile of satisfaction, he knew he had chosen the perfect person to lay the blame on. His eyes glared evilly. 

Snape looked at Harry. "Mr. Potter?" He smiled. "Come here." Harry looked at Ron with panic. Harry stepped up to Snape, trying not to look guilty. 

"So, you did this?" Snape inquired. Harry shook his head quickly. "No, I didn't." He said firmly. Snape eyed him skeptically. "Then why did Malfoy say so?" 

Harry shrugged. "Cause he doesn't want to get in trouble?" Harry suggested sarcastically. Snape glared, his eyes bulging dangerously. "Are you suggesting that Malfoy's lying?" 

Harry felt a surge of anger. "Well, aren't you suggesting that _I'm_ lying?" He said defiantly. Ron and Hermione shrank back into their seats, both feeling extremely guilty. 

"I didn't ask you to talk back to me!" Snape barked loudly. "Until you admit of your offense, you will do at least one week in detention! You may meet Filch after classes are over tonight!" Harry groaned. _Well, at least he didn't take any points off Gryffindor…_

Snape was too upset to remember to take any points off Gryffindor. Harry could see his face had become more pasty than usual, and his hair was more limp than it should have been. 

Harry went back to his seat. _One week with Filch, all alone._ _This was gonna be Hell. Well, at least I know he won't be like Lockhart. _The bell rang, and Snape dismissed class. _The weird thing,_ Harry thought, _was that this time, I _had_ done it, I had been the one to lie._

He quickly shook the thought away, Malfoy deserved that one moment of humiliation. Ron and Hermione joined in on the moping. They sat on the bench outside the Hogwarts building. Ron started the conversation.

"Filch huh? I guess it doesn't get worse than that…" He said uncomfortably. "Trust me Harry, don't get stuck with cleaning the trophies, and try not to let Filch make you clean out the bathrooms, especially Moaning Myrtle's."

Harry nodded glumly. "Sure Ron, whatever you say." Hermione decided it was time for a little bit of her input. "Think of it this way Harry, at least, well, you might get to know Filch better… I mean, maybe he's not that bad." She said sheepishly.

Ron and Harry looked at her as if she was crazy. "What?! That's the biggest piece of crap you've ever said in your entire life, and believe me, you've said some pretty stupid things…" Ron exclaimed. "Filch isn't bad!" He mocked Hermione in an unusually high voice.

Hermione looked hurt. "Whatever, I'm just trying to help Harry, you're just being plain stupid!" She said obstinately. Harry held his face in his hands. "You aren't helping…" He said defenselessly. They apparently didn't hear him and kept on arguing. 

"You aren't helping." Harry said a little bit louder. They still didn't hear him and bickered loudly. Harry sighed. "You guys aren't helping, God damn it!" Hermione and Ron stopped abruptly and opened their eyes wide in awe. 

"Uh, er, sorry 'bout that Harry." Ron said quietly. Hermione nodded. "Sorry. Well, let's go in now, it's getting chilly." She rubbed her arms.

"Yeah." Harry agreed. As they walked in the dark majestic corridors, they saw Malfoy coming in their direction. The three groaned.

"Hey!" Malfoy said loudly. "Potter! You better get to detention!" He sneered. "Shut up Malfoy!" Ron yelled. "Ooh… what are you? Potter's body guard?" He scoffed proudly.

"I bet-" He began. All of a sudden, he the uneven tapping of Mad-Eye Moody's leg on the bare stone floor. As if on cue, the Auror appeared right on time. 

He smiled. "Hello Mr. Malfoy. Have you ever been turned into any animal before, hmm, preferably a weasel of some sort?" It was a strange coincidence that even though the last year, it had been Crouch whom had performed that cruel, but highly amusing stunt, Mad-Eye Moody seemed to know exactly what had been going on and it was as if he expected the little uncomfortable jerk in Malfoy's throat.

"Uh, why sir?" Malfoy choked. Ron jeered quietly. "If only his little Snapie could save him now…" Harry nodded in complete agreement. Even Hermione gave a tiny snicker.

Mad-Eye Moody shrugged. "Just wondering." He winked to Harry, Ron and Hermione and continued on his way. "If only father knew…" His voice trailed off, and without saying another word, he left.

"My day just got better…" Harry smiled.

Author's Note: I wrote this at like 11:30 at night, so don't flame me too badly for a stupid chapter, I was totally asleep, and totally bored. BTW, it looks like Harry and his friends have gotten used to the concept of cussing… haha.


	15. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters etc. belong to JK Rowling… blah blah blah.

Chapter 15 – The Cloaked Figure

Harry sat alone outside the school grounds holding a rag in his right hand. He sat quietly on the grass of the open Quidditch field. _Why couldn't Filch have taken longer to recover?_

Harry sighed. He had a school broom in his hand and he was polishing the handle. His eyes had grown sore of going up and down following the never ending motion of his hand. Harry dropped the broom and moved on to the next one. 

He stared at the pile of brooms on his left side and shook his head. His arms were getting sore, but he still had so many more to do. 

The sky was getting dark, the stars were starting to show and the moon was ascending over the treetops. Harry saw Filch coming over in his direction and worked harder on the broom. "You almost done?" Filch asked in his raspy voice. Harry nodded. "Yeah." 

"Good." Filch eyed Harry suspiciously. "After this, you can go to your dorm." After that, Filch left. 

Harry rubbed the handle of the broom more vigorously hoping to finish it faster. All of a sudden he heard a rustling behind him. On instinct he flung himself around, the broom still in his hand. "Hello?" He said in a squeaky voice. "Who's there?"

Nobody answered. Harry shook his head. "It's just the wind, or maybe a stray cat or dog or something." He said quietly to himself. He heard the rustling again. This time he didn't say anything and lit up his wand. "Lumos!" 

He looked around, to his utter amazement, he saw the same cloaked figure he had noticed before. The person turned it's cloaked head around as if to see if anybody was there and then hurried into the bushes. 

Harry dropped his broom and rag. Should he go after it? No, he told himself. He'd go and tell Dumbledore in the morning. But who was it? 

Harry stood up and let his curiosity get the better of him. He hurried after the mysterious person into the woods. He could barely see where he was going, many times he tripped over a root or even over his own feet. Harry held his wand high above his head. It didn't give much light but it provided enough from running into a tree. 

His robe got caught many times on branches and tore. His eyes strained to see before him, but he could barely even see his feet. He ran blindly for about ten minutes and then he fell into a sand pit. 

_Oh no._ Harry thought. He shook his head. _No, it couldn't be._ The moon was shining bright above him. Harry fought hard to get out of the mud, but it was as if he had weights tied to his ankles, he couldn't run. Something was pulling him back. It seemed for every step he took, he ran two steps backwards. The ground was pulling him into it, embracing him like a warm bath. 

He could see the cloaked figure just in front of him. Harry used all his might to pull himself from the mysterious force which was holding him back. He grabbed a branch and tried to use it to help him up but it was no use. Harry stopped struggling, and then, immediately, the force let go.

__

It must be when you stop struggling it will let you go… Harry thought. He started after the cloaked person again. This time, he ran faster and within moments, he was right behind him/her.

Whether he/she knew that Harry was following him/her, he didn't know. Finally, the person stopped. He/she spoke, and Harry recognized the voice, but he couldn't identify who it was, but he could tell it was a man. 

"Why are you following me Harry?" Harry's eyes opened wide. "Excuse me?" Harry choked. 

"I asked why you were following me." The mysterious person spoke quietly. The voice wasn't cruel but it was stern and strict. Still, Harry couldn't help but feel nervous.

"How do you know it's me? A-and, how did you know I was following you?" Harry asked. He immediately gave in, to the fact that the he was following him, and that he was Harry.

"Never mind that." He snapped. "Sorry. I wanted to know why you were following me." The voice said more persistently. 

Harry shrugged. "Well, I was just curious, that's all. I mean, who are you and what are you doing here anyway? Why are you in that cloak and what do you have to hide?" Once Harry started asking questions, he couldn't stop, and he threw random questions at the stranger. "Oh," Harry added. "And, what happened to that unicorn?" 

"Well," said the figure. "I advise you leave now. Return to your school, and we will forget this ever happened." 

Harry shook his head. "No, I demand to know who you are." The fear left Harry's voice, but it didn't leave his chest. His heart was pounding so loudly that he was sure it would wake up all of Hogwarts. 

The figure still hadn't turned around but instead spoke with more alarm in his voice and more distress. "Leave, now. Go." He said. It seemed as if he didn't want to get mad. "Go, Harry, it's for your own good." 

Harry's face became red. "Everybody says that what they do is for my own good, everybody! Who knows what's for my own good? How should you? I demand to know who you are and what you are doing here!" Harry said.

"GO!" The person had almost what could be identified as panic in his voice. "GO, NOW!" 

Harry shook his head fiercely. "NO! WHO ARE YOU?!" Harry was shaking. He grabbed his wand and held it at the person. "IF YOU DON'T TELL ME WHO YOU ARE, I'LL-I'LL…" Harry stopped. He couldn't do this. He couldn't threaten a person like this. 

The person seemed to respond to this behavior better. "Well, Harry, if you really want to know…" He shook his hooded head. "If you really want to…"

Harry nodded. "Yes, I do." Harry was calm, and he noticed that once he became calm, the other person became calm also. "Who are you?" He whispered softly. "I just want to know."

The person shook his head again. "You'll regret this. You'll wish you never knew… I warn you, you still have time to turn back, leave me alone, go back to Hogwarts and forget this incident." 

"NO!" Harry became angry again. "Why won't you tell me? You say that you know so much about me that you know what's best for me, then who are you?" 

"You want to know who I am… OK, then." He turned around. He threw back his black hood and what Harry saw stunned him. 

It was Professor Lupin. 

Author's Note: I know this is a really short chapter, but I was in a rush. I know this doesn't make sense either, but work with me here ok? I'm pretty much just making this up as I go along, it took me ten minutes to come up with Lupin's name. Yeah, I know, that's sad…


	16. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters etc. belong to JK Rowling.

Chapter 16 - Professor Lupin

Dropping his wand and nearly collapsing with sheer amazement was Harry's first reaction. He couldn't even begin to say anything. All he could do was stutter random letters. His eyes grew to the size of his glasses and even his hair seemed to stand on end. 

"P-p-rofessor? W-what?" Harry's heart beat so quickly he thought he'd die of a heart attack on the spot.

"Yes, Harry. It's me." Lupin's hair was grayish whitish and the bags under his eyes brought out the pale, pasty color of his face. His head hung so low, it was as if he was trying to push his chin into a non-existent chest pocket.

"Before you say anything, let me explain." Lupin began. Harry had no problem following those instructions, his jaws were locked in the strange position, half-open, half closed. 

"Well, er, lately, I've been having some trouble. There aren't many places you can find work when the world knows you are a werewolf. But, you see, there is a place, I found a job at Hogsmeade, and I've been using the Shrieking Shack for my transformations, and I found out something, Harry." He hesitated. 

Harry looked at Lupin more intensely. "Yeah?" 

"The Death Eaters are back and there are a lot of them, I dunno if they have already come to Hogwarts, but when I was transforming, I heard them talking."

Lupin sighed. "And of course, it's my natural instinct to attack other beings that disturb me and well, let's just say they discovered me…" He sighed a heavy sigh, and Harry noticed how old he was looking.

"Oh, well, when I was at Hogsmeade, I heard them too at the robes shop. They were talking about how they were going to round up all the rest of the Death Eaters and they would meet at the Shrieking Shack in a few months or so." Harry said. 

"They have been to Hogwarts too. They attacked a few people, but Madam Pomfrey cured them. They think that the wizard performed just a temporary freezing so they person could pass unharmed. They also believe that the wizard probably wasn't Lord Voldemort himself or the consequences would have been more harsh, but whoever did it left the Dark Mark."

He stopped to catch his breath. Lupin was listening intently. "They've been to Hogwarts?" He furrowed his brow. "Hmm… you're not still keeping that Sorcerer's Stone there are you?" Harry shook his head. Lupin nodded. "I see."

"Anyway," Lupin said after a moment's pause. "I don't know if I heard right, but they said they were going to get your mother? By what they said I think that they will- hold on, I have this recorded on my wand, let me see if I can find it…" He searched through his ragged robes. "Ok, here it is…" 

Lupin said a few magic words, "Recordes Memorabilia!" and in a few seconds, a misted image came through the tip of his thin wand. 

Harry recognized it as the Shrieking Shack. Two men in black robes were sitting down across from each other, both talking in hush-hush voices.

"Now that we have the remaining Death Eaters, I can perform the spell and bring her here." 

"His mother you say? How will you do that?"

"I have a part of her living soul that I kept in this box," He picked up a small wooden chest and brought it in front of him. Harry could see a tough thick lock hanging from the latch. "I can easily bring her back to a living form just as easily as I killed the rest of her soul."

"So you mean that she has been living in a box for these many years? You are clever, master." 

"Yes, but you must remember, that I am, of course, the most powerful Dark wizard this world has ever known." He laughed cold and mirthlessly and the laugh sent chills down Harry's spine. 

All of a sudden, it seemed as if the image was being thrown to the floor, and Harry heard snarling. Since the wand was dropped to the floor, Harry saw the rest from an ant's point of view. 

He saw four sharp-clawed paws digging into the wood, and he heard the amazement of the two wizards. At this point, Lupin abruptly waved his wand, and the rest of the misted image retraced back into it. 

The whole time, Lupin was staring at Harry's face paitnetly and searching for an expression on Harry's face that could mean something, like surprise, confusion, regret, anger, fear, etc.

When the last of the picture had disappeared, Lupin looked up sharply. Harry regretted this instantly. "Well," Harry explained. " I just heard from Sirius a little bit about that, you know, it's probably not true." He added quickly. He knew that Lupin didn't believe that, and neither did he. 

Harry was hoping that he could see his mother actually, and hoped with all his heart that the "rumor" was true. "I mean, it's just a rumor." He tried to force a small laugh but it came out sounding more like a parched gasp. 

"Don't say that like you don't think it's a big deal, Harry, because it is." Lupin said. "Everyone thought that your mother died, and now we find out that some of her is still living. Don't talk about it like it's not important to you!" Lupin bellowed.

Harry was surprised. Lupin was normally known as a pretty mellow character, he was never known to yell and speak harshly. He nodded to show he understood. "Yes, sir. I'm sorry." 

"Now, Harry. I want you to go back into the building, it's getting late- Wait a minute, what are you doing out here in the first place?" He looked at Harry skeptically. 

Harry shrugged. "Detention." Lupin nodded. "Ah." Harry turned around to go back when a thought crossed his mind. "What are YOU doing here anyway?" He asked.

Lupin frowned. "I've told you enough for one night, Harry. Go back to Hogwarts and forget this incident ok? Promise me you won't mention this to anybody, don't even tell Ron, Hermione, not even Sirius, he will know when it's time. Swear?" By the look on Lupin's face, Harry knew that he wasn't joking around, and nodded.

"Not a soul." Harry said reassuringly. Then he turned around and left. The moon was pale and white, and the stars seemed to hold the blackness on the sky. Harry felt remorse in this whole situation. He felt morose, confused and extremely sad. 

Not until Harry had left the clearing did he hear the rustling of leaves and branches and he knew that Lupin had gone.

Author's Note: Please review! It won't take long, I promise. This chapter is a little confusing I know, but it will all unravel later… I have started to think ahead, and it helps a lot. I already have some of the main parts of the story all thought out, YAY! Good for me.


	17. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: All the characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 17 – The Christmas Holidays

The days were short and the nights were long. The snow covered treetops towered eerily casting long and quiescent shadows in the pure, white earth. Bright sunshine shone through the long and scraggly tree branches. 

Harry woke up to the sound of Hedwig fluttering around briskly in her cage. He felt unbelievably tired, as if he had just abruptly woken up from a deep and serene trance. The events of last night didn't seem to bother Harry significantly. The incident seemed far away, like the end of a mile-long tunnel that Harry didn't bother to strive for. He turned his head to look for Ron.

Ron was still sleeping, one of his arms hanging off the bed, snoring ever so slightly. Harry stepped over to Hedwig's cage. 

"Come here." He stuck his arms into the cage and jerked a little bit as the large, magnificent, white owl dug her talons into Harry's thin arm. Slowly and carefully he lifted out of the cage, his arm trembling barely under the owl's weight. 

Hedwig was restless. With his free hand, Harry opened the window, letting a gust of chilly wind into the room. As Hedwig took off, Harry wrapped his cloak around his shoulders, trying to cover himself from the icy wind. 

Closing the window with an effort, he looked at the clock. It read, 7:18 am. Harry shivered. _It's too early to be awake, _Harry thought. _I bet Dumbledore isn't even awake yet…_ Groggily, he crawled back into bed, grateful for the thick, soft blankets that wrapped him up in it's pampering warmth.

* * * * * 

It seemed as if he had just lain down when Ron came and shoved him off the side of the bed. "Umph!" 

"Hell, Ron, what was that for?" Harry said, his eyes barely open. 

"Hurry up, Harry! Breakfast! We have to get there before all the cinnamon rolls are gone!" Ron said.

Harry squinted his eyes and watched as the five Ron slowly came into focus. "All you Ron's and being stupid. We're the only ones here except for Hermione and a few other people. Who's seriously going to be hungry enough to eat all the rolls?" 

The floor was unpleasant so Harry stood up, his blanket still tangled around him, like some sort of whipped cream. He tossed the heavy blanket back onto the bed, while Ron went and got Harry's robes for him. 

"Now," Ron scolded. "Hurry up!" Harry moved as fast as he could, his arms feeling like ten pounds of lead each, he wasn't even going to begin to think about his legs. By the time he had finished dressing, Ron was about to jump out the window in impatience. 

"Okay. Ready." Harry mumbled, still upset that Ron had pushed him off his bed. They headed downstairs, Ron ahead, and Harry lagging behind. Hermione joined them soon. 

"Did you have a good sleep?" She asked amiably. Ron nodded, but Harry just grumbled under his breath. As they reached the bottom of the stairs, they met Snape. 

His slick hair seemed gleam evilly. He looked at all three of them with his corrupt eyes, darting back and forth. 

"Hello, children." He said oily. "You are late for breakfast." He said smugly, over-emphasizing his authority. 

The three kids shrugged. "We're going down right now." Hermione said innocently, smiling brightly, hoping to lift the atmosphere. But Snape felt more irritated by Hermione's effort to be cheerful, it showed obviously on his prominent face. 

Snape twisted his face in such a way that Harry never thought possible. "Well," He said tartly. "You better go down now." His face was staring straight at Harry's, firm and unmovable. Harry refrained from coughing at the smell of Snape's putrid breath. 

They watched as Snape went up the stairs, his white hands gripping tightly onto the banister precariously. 

The three of them were snickering, well, Hermione was trying to restrain a smile. They would have stayed there for much longer if the evocative smells from the dining hall hadn't floated into the hallway. 

Once they reached the dining hall, they sat down, aware of the many eyes watching them. "I'm sorry we're late." Hermione said as politely as she could to Professor Dumbledore. 

He nodded and waved his hand, "Go ahead. I'm sorry we didn't wait for you." 

Harry sighed. _What a gentlemen._ Harry thought. Dumbledore was almost like a godfather to Harry just as much as Sirius was. As he helped himself to the rolls and juice that had automatically appeared upon his plate, he noticed the look on Dumbledore's face. It was one mixed with worry and anxiety. 

All of a sudden, the events of last night came into Harry's mind unexpectedly. What had Lupin said? He couldn't remember. Something about… what was it? Or did he actually reveal anything at all? It was like trying to catch dust, when he thought he had it, he didn't. 

Did Dumbledore know about it? Did Lupin already tell Dumbledore? The facts became a mass of words in Harry's mind. 

After breakfast, Ron, Hermione and Harry went off to talk with Hagrid. They hadn't been talking to him much, considering the large amount of homework the teachers had burdened each of them with. 

Harry took a deep breath of the sharp, crisp winter air and watched his breath come out in little wisps of air. He rubbed his stiff hands together and fixed his glasses closer up to his nose.

As they trudged along in the shin deep snow, they buried their hands in their pockets. Harry fiddled with his wand as he focused on his legs and moving them up and down taking into account that they were numb to the bone. 

They spotted Hagrid shoveling snow with a long shovel. 

They ran up to him. "Hey, Hagrid." Harry said.

"Oh, hi. What are yeh doing out here? It's freezing." Harry could see Hagrid rub his large hands together, balancing his shovel on his right knee. Harry shrugged.

"We came to see you. Do you want some help?" Hermione said helpfully. 

Hagrid shook his head. "Nah, I couldn't have yeh help me, t'wouldn't be right." He sighed. "Pity though, can't use magic to help with this job." 

Harry contradicted. "C'mon Hagrid. We could help. Why don't you rest for a little bit, _we_ can use magic. Let us do it. It's so cold out here, you could spit and it would become ice before it hit the snow." 

Hagrid shook his head, but Harry, Ron and Hermione insisted. Finally, he gave in. Taking his shovel inside, he gave them some advice. 

"Stay away from burrows. You don't want to shovel up a family of groundhogs." He added. 

As Hagrid went inside, the three of them got to work. "Now what do we do?" They boys looked at Hermione. Hermione shrugged.

"All we have to do is perform a simple spell. Repeat after me. _Shovayla elevatrious!_" They watched as a large pile of snow was thrown in a direction away from them and dissolved once it hit the ground. 

It took a few minutes for them to get the spell exact, but after they had it down, they had a lot of fun with it. They tossed snowballs at each other using their wands, watching eagerly as the snow disappeared once it hit the victim. 

After about ten minutes of this raucous game, Harry stopped. At first he didn't know what was going on. He stood there, motionless, like a statue. Ron and Hermione stopped also, but only to see what was the problem with Harry.

"Harry," Hermione said, her brow furrowed. "What's wrong?" 

Ron laughed. "Did I hit you too hard with that last snowball?" Hermione nudged him. 

Harry stood there, he was paralyzed physically, it was more like mentally, if he wanted to move, he would, but something in his mind stopped. He was positioned like a lion ready to pounce on its victim. 

"Shhh." He said. "Listen." Hermione and Ron shrugged and strained their ears to hear what Harry was hearing. 

"I don't hear anything. Do you?" Ron asked Hermione. "What is it that you hear Harry?" 

Harry shook his head. "I don't know, but it's something. It's like music, a sweet, soft tune. Don't you hear it?" Hermione and Ron shook their heads in disbelief.

"Harry, what are you talking about?" Said Ron in exasperation.

Harry closed his eyes. "I'm telling you, it's music. I've heard it somewhere before, no, it's not really music, it's more like… a rhythm, a beat. No, wait, I can't tell what it is. It's totally new, yet somehow familiar." His voice trailed off.

All of a sudden, everything just blanked out. Harry felt a rush of coldness in his body, was as if he had just fallen 200 feet. He didn't hear his parents, he didn't hear anything but the sweet, peaceful music drumming in his ears. 

The voices of Ron and Hermione slowly left him, the sounds were fading away like the sun in the evening. He barely stayed conscious to see Hagrid rush from his hut and lean over Harry like Harry was growing a daisy from his forehead. 

* * * * *

Harry heard a murmur of voices. One of them he could recognize as Dumbledore's. The other's was somebody Harry didn't think he knew. They were talking quietly, as if they were discussing something top-secret that one would guard with his/her life. 

Harry looked around. He was in the infirmary, he acknowledged the white walls and weird smelling sheets.

When Harry had gotten his eyes to open fully, he saw Dumbledore walk to beside bed. 

"Harry," He began gently. "Do you know what happened on the field today?" Dumbledore's voice was soft, calm yet grave. "Can you describe anything?" 

Harry swallowed. "Well, sir, we were just um, walking on the school grounds, and all of a sudden, I heard a strange sound in my ears." Dumbledore looked thoughtfully. 

"Can you distinguish it?" He said. Harry shook his head. "Not exactly. It was some sort of music, but I wasn't sure if it had a melody, rhythm, or just a droning of voices." 

Dumbledore sighed. "I already talked to Ron and Hermione, they said they couldn't hear it. Do you suppose it's some sort of Parsel-tongue?" 

Harry was baffled. "I don't… I don't know, sir." 

Dumbledore nodded. "Keep going." 

Harry continued. "Well, then I froze, and Ron and Hermione came to see what the problem was, and like you said, when I told them it was a sound, they couldn't hear it. Then, then, I fell to the ground. That's all I remember, I'm sorry." 

"Don't be sorry, Harry." Dumbledore said kindly. "I asked Professor Moody about this, and I sent a letter to Sirius. I haven't gotten a reply from him yet, but Professor Moody says that he doesn't know what this is, he's never heard of it, all his years as an Auror." 

"Well," Harry said politely. "It's not that big of a deal. No harm was done. I'm okay now, should I go back to my dorm?" 

Dumbledore nodded. "I'm glad no harm was done of course, but it is a big deal. Okay then Harry, you can go back to your dorm. I will inform you when I get some reply from Sirius." 

"Yes, sir." Harry nodded obediently.

When Harry arrived at his dorm, Ron and Hermione ran to greet him. "What happened? Did they figure out what was wrong, Harry?" They bomb fired with questions. Harry just shook his head sadly. 

"They didn't figure out anything. "I'm tired. I think I should get a rest." Ron and Hermione challenged that. 

"But Harry," Hermione said. "We saved some dinner for you in case you were hungry. You didn't have anything for lunch or supper. Are you sure you're not hungry? I don't think it's good for you not to eat for too long. Let me go warm up some dinner." Hermione was talking so quickly, both Ron and Harry were left in the dust. 

All Harry could manage to say was, "It's all right." But Hermione just kept on jabbering on how every growing child needed to have a healthy diet, and how muggles had something called the "food pyramid." 

Harry stopped listening to her, and curled up in a ball in his bed and went to sleep. When Hermione came back with his dinner, she found him fast asleep.

Author's Note: You may find this chapter a little bit confusing, but I'll explain it later. Not much to say here, just that I'm sorry I'm not writing that much, I hardly ever get on the computer at all anymore.


End file.
